Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident
by RocketShark216
Summary: Graham Ulry has a rough life. He's adjusting to a new country, new friends, and a new crush. But it becomes worse when he and his friends are trapped inside a new VRMMORPG. Now, to avoid a horrible demise, Graham must rise up and become the hero he never could be in real life. Can he survive? Pairings are LeafaXOC, KiritoXAsuna, and KleinXSinon.
1. Chapter 1: Prolouge

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 1: Prolouge**

**AN: Hey guys, I'm back with another attempt at an SAO fanfiction. I tried to write one awhile ago, but I'd barely watched the series at that point, so it sucked. Anywhoo, I have decided to write a sort of sequel to SAO II that takes place in a new VRMMORPG I created for this story, Arena Online. The story will feature my OC Graham as the main character but Kirito, Asuna, Silica, Lisbeth, Klein, Leafa, and maybe even Sinon will be supporting characters. Main Pairing is LeafaXOC. Rated T. Please review!**

** He** didn't belong there. That was something he'd known for a long time. Everyone else knew it too. But he was still there. No matter how much he didn't fit in, he was still there. Graham Ulry was a stranger in an even stranger land.

His family had moved to Japan the summer before. He hated it. Knowing that he was on the other side of the world than his home in America was the worst feeling in the world. Just like how slaves felt when they were taken from their homes and put to work in a brand new world, Graham felt as if he'd been plucked out of Ohio and dropped in the middle of Japan by some giant invisible hand that controlled the universe.

The combination of American Teenager plus Japan did not add up harmonously. He'd been experiancing extreme culture shock for months, and he was certain he'd be experiancing it for the forseeable future.

The only thing keeping him sane: a virtual reality device known as "Virtua-Gear" that teleported gamers into the game they were playing. When he'd first been presented with the device, no games had been released for it, but a brand-new VRMMORPG titled Arena Online was being released that very day. Graham was standing in front of a local game store to get a copy of the game. Above the store's entrance sat a tv currently playing the trailer for the game. It showed views of the beautifal landscape of Ovalon, the fictional island kingdom in which the game took place. All the while an announcer talked about the features for the game.

"Ovalon! A beautifal sprawling kingdom where all your wishes come true! Now an army of 7 collosal beasts known as the Collective led by an ever bigger beast have invaded Ovalon and are threatening the balance of the kingdom! So go! Create your character, choose your class, and mow down your enemies with a variety of guns and swords as you search for the eight hidden boss arenas and prepare to bring the fight to the Collective! And you can also compete with other players in PvP arenas to earn new skill trees to access in game. The world of Arena Online awaits you, so buy a copy today and become legendary! Rated T for teen. Additional DLC content may be purchased later. Requires a Virtua-Gear helmet to play."

The trailer then ended and started again as Graham reached the front of the line, meaning he could go inside. Upon entering the store, he saw three familiar kids who he immediatley identified as Kazuto Kirayagi, his sister, Suguha, and his girlfriend, Asuna Yuki. Graham just so happened to live next door to their friend Klein, and he'd hung out with them on occasion. Each of them were holding a copy of the game. They were about to exit the store when they saw him. Asuna spoke.

"Hey, fancy seeing you here, Graham-san. I can't believe we ran into you. Here to buy the game, I assume?"

"Yeah."

Kazuto then spoke.

"Well, we're all about to go home and play it. You should party up with us."

"Maybe. See you guys around."

He then watched as they exited the store. Suguha turned and waved and Graham felt his cheeks burn as they turned red. Ever since he'd met her, he'd developed a bit of a crush on Sugu. Whether or not she liked him in the same way(or liked him at all, for that matter) he wasn't for certain. He then whispered to himself.

"A party, huh guys? I'll do that."

**Hey guys, just wanted to write a quick little prolouge to the story to get my creative flow started. Please review.**


	2. Chapter 2: Link Start

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 2: Link Start**

**AN: Hey guys, enjoy the chapter! Also, just a quick little tidbit about the story: all of the characters from the actual show look like they did in the first VRMMO they played while they are in Arena Online. For example, Kirito, Asuna, Klein, Lisbeth, and Silica all have their SAO outfits, Leafa has her ALO outfit, and Sinon keeps her GGO outfit. **

Graham Ulry sat in his room, thinking about the events of the last hour. He'd went out to get Arena Online, the new VRMMORPG, and had run into his friends Kazuto, Asuna, and his crush, Suguha, who'd suggested that they all four party up in the game. Graham was now wondering if that wasn't such a bad idea. He was always a bit of a loner, and he did need the socialization. Plus, spending time with some of the only people willing to hang out with him wouldn't be so bad. He then sighed before plugging in the Virtua-Gear and inserting it on his head. He then laid down on his bed before speaking.

"Link start!"

He then fell into unconscious and then "woke up" to find himself in an empty room with a keyboard in front of him. A voice then spoke.

"Welcome to Arena Online. Before you may start playing, please select a class, starting skill and weapon, and then name you character using the keyboard below."

Graham then searched through the classes. Nothing really stood out to him until he saw the one he wanted: Knight. He picked it before searching through the skills. He picked the starting skill in the Sword skill tree before picking a basic one-handed sword and a basic shield. He then finished and proceeded to name his character. He though for awhile before eventually deciding to name his character after himself, not being too picky and more or less just not being prepared to name a fantasy character. The voice then addressed him once more.

"Thank you. You will now be teleported to Evergreen, the starting village of the game."

He then felt himself being teleported. Soon he arrived in the village and he looked around, seeing thousands upon thousands of other players spawning in the same area. He then looked down to examine himself. He was wearing a suit of chain mail with a white armor-vest around it. He also had a bulky helmet with he immediately ditched, as well as his weapons. He then decided to search around for a bit to see if he could find his friends, deciding to take them up on their offer after all. After a couple minutes if relentless searching, the people he'd been searching for found him instead. He suddenly felt a finger prod him on the shoulder. He then turned to see a female player who looked like Asuna. He then spoke.

"Asuna? That you?"

She then nodded, giggling while she did. Another player who looked like Kazuto then spoke.

"You were lost, weren't you?"

Graham then responded.

"You could say that, Kazuto."

Kazuto then responded.

"Yeah. Oh, and please, call me by my avatar name, Kirito."

"Got it. Asuna, what about you? You have a special avatar name?"

"Nope. Like you, I prefer to stick with my real name. So, are you gonna take us up on our offer or what?"

"I guess. So, who else are we meeting up with?"

Kirito then responded.

"Well, Silica's bound to be with Lisbeth, Sugu's probably lost by herself, and Klein and Sinon are probably off arguing somewhere."

Graham then responded in a sarcastic tone.

"Nice. So, you know a good place to get a better sword?"

Asuna then chimed in.

"Well, Lisbeth's an awesome blacksmith, but you'd have to wait for her to open up her shop, so...this sentence was pointless."

Graham then spoke.

"I'll be sure to shop there a lot once it's open."

Kirito then spoke.

"So gang, who should we find first?"

Graham then responded, interrupting Asuna, who was in the middle of speaking herself.

"If Sugu's alone, we should go find her first."

Asuna then responded, smirking while she did.

"That isn't the only reason you wanna find her first, is it?"

Graham immediately defended himself, his cheeks bright red.

"What are you talking about?! What other reason could there be?!"

"Don't try to hide it Graham. I mean, it's really obvious."

Graham became visibly angry but before he could yell a very clueless Kirito chimed in.

"What's obvious?"

Graham immediately spoke.

"Nothing. Let's just find Sugu, shall we?"

Kirito nodded and Asuna giggled. The trio then walked around for awhile. Soon they found a player who Kirito identified as Leafa. He then greeted her.

"Sugu! Over here!"

**Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, in the next chapter Archer traps the players in the game and begins the death game. Please review!**


	3. Chapter 3: The Death Game

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 3: The Death Game **

**AN: Hey guys, I'm back with chapter 3! I hope you enjoy! Please read and review and I will keep these awesome chapters coming! **

"Sugu! Over here!"

Leave then turned to face them. She then spoke.

"You guys found me! This starting area is huge."

Asuna then responded.

"Yeah, I know. Well, we found Graham. He agreed to party up with us. We just need to find Silica, Lisbeth, Klein, and Sinon. We should probably start searching the starting market. Lisbeth is bound to be referencing prices for her store. Let's go."

They all three nodded at Asuna and they headed to the market. Soon they were surrounded by thousands of new players who were trying to buy better items. Kirito and Asuna were both focused on finding Lisbeth and Silica but Graham and Leafa were finding themselves lost in the sea of awesome items to buy. Eventually after prying Graham and Leafa from several items they were dead set on buying, Kirito and Asuna finally found Silica and Lisbeth. Lisbeth was examine sword after sword, and poor Silica had to be dragged through every store with her. Asuna then greeted them, interrupting their window-shopping spree.

"Lisbeth! It's us!"

Lisbeth then responded.

"You guys finally found us. It looks like Graham took you up on that offer. I knew he would. So, I'm assuming you haven't found Klein and Sinon yet?"

Graham then chimed in.

"Unless they're invisible now, no."

Lisbeth responded in a dry tone.

"You always were the sarcastic one."

Graham grinned and Kirito interrupted them all.

"Alright, we found you two, now we just need to find Klein and Sinon."

Graham then spoke.

"Mission accomplished."

Silica responded quickly.

"You found them? Where?!"

Graham then pointed to Klein and Sinon, who were both arguing a few yards away. Kirito then addressed them.

"Klein! Sinon! Over here!"

They both turned around and Klein spoke.

"Hey, you guys made it! We would've looked for you guys, but Ms. Blue over here insisted on finding the strongest sniper rifle in the whole marketplace before we left. Which took forever. Say, you got Graham to join the party. I thought he'd never go along with that idea. So, should we head out of the starting area?"

Kirito then responded.

"I guess. Form the party."

They all proceeded to open their menus and party up before heading to the exit. They then saw a sign that read "To The Rocky Mountains." and they went onto the path leading up to it. They then began to grind the various monsters and Golems on the base of the mountain. Soon they were all level 5 and they were about to head back when they were mysteriously teleported back to the square in Evergreen. They then began to look around, where thousands of other confused players were now gathered. The fountain in the middle of the square opened up and a platform rose up from the inside. Standing on the platform was a man with a black cloak and a blood red mask. He then spoke.

"Greetings, everyone. And welcome to Ovalon! A glorious place, don't you agree? Well, it should be. After all...we all want to die in paradise."

Graham then whispered to himself.

"Die in paradise? Is this guy on something?!"

The man then continued.

"Forgive me, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Archer. I am the creator of Arena Online and the Virtua-Gear. As some of you may have already noticed, the log out button is no longer in the menu. This is not a bug, but a design choice made during development by yours truly. Players can no longer log out of Arena Online. In addition, if anyone in the outside world tampers with the Virtua-Gear, it will emit an electrical charge into your body, frying your organs and ending your life. The only way to leave the game now is to defeat the Collective and their leader, the Dark Spectre. As of right now, over a hundred players have had their rigs tampered with. An unfortunate loss, yes, but a necessary one at that. Now every news station in the world will broadcast information on the Virtua-Gear and Arena Online and no more rigs will be tampered with. So please let that be of some comfort as you try to complete the game. In addition, there is no longer any way to revive someone in-game. If you die, your avatar will be deleted from the system, and the Virtua-Gear will simultaneously kill you. Some of you may be wondering why I'm doing this. It's very simple. A few years ago the same thing happened to the players of a game called Sword Art Online. Well, someone who was very important to me died playing the game. And I happen to be a fan of Kayaba, so I had to make my own death game. This is not personal. It's just business. My business. The death game officially begins now. How you complete the game is up to you. Go it alone or die in a big group. I honestly don't care. Just know that I will not be helping or hindering you in your mission. That is all. I hope to see you again someday. Though most of you will not survive. Farewell for now."

The fountain faded away as if it were a hologram and everyone began to panic. Silica then yelled in fear.

"Not again!"

Graham then turned to Lisbeth, who was next to him, before speaking.

"So, are you opening that shop anytime soon? I think were gonna need it."

Kirito then spoke.

"Graham, we need to stay calm. We're a party, we can do this."

"Im thankful for the sentiment and all, but I need to be alone for a while. Ill friend you guys."

Asuna then responded as Graham turned and began to walk away.

"Wait! Where will you go?!"

Graham then turned and responded.

"To kill the Collective."

**Hey guys, sorry for the short chapter. In the next chapter, Graham joins a guild known as the Ranger. Please review! I really appreciate!**


	4. Chapter 4: All Hail the Rangers

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 4: All Hail the Rangers**

**AN: Hey guys, this chapter features the debut of some OCs, so I hope you guys like them. Please review!**

It had been a month or so since the death game had launched. Thousands of players had died, several dungeons had been cleared, but all in all, none of the 8 boss arenas had been found. Graham had coped very well, and although he did join up with them once in a while, he refused to permanently stay with Kirito and the others. Today he was grinding mobs in The Rocky Mountains with Klein. Soon they had both leveled up to level 10 and Klein spoke.

"Man, that was a good fight. Lots of good loot."

Graham then responded.

"Yeah, I know. So, I think we should call it a day."

"I agree. Hey, listen, we started a guild, and Kirito wants you to join. How about it?"

"I appreciate the offer, but I'm more of a lone wolf."

"Kirito used to be that way. Got him into trouble more often than not. You should join us. The White Knights of Ovalon could use someone like you."

"Maybe some other day. Besides, I've got an arena to look for. I'll see you around, Klein."

Klein said goodbye and they went their separate ways. Graham's walk was mostly quiet until he heard screaming. He then turned to look in the direction of the scream, and when he did he saw quite a sight. Standing on a stone platform were four figures: one was a tall boy wearing a brown and green cloak with a broadsword, one was a somewhat shorter girl with pink hair in a ponytail, a while cloak, and a white staff, another was a large boy wearing a grey vest with grenades on it and green camouflage pants with a grenade launcher, and the other was a slighted taller boy with white hair, a blue hat, and a blue cloak with a sniper rifle. They were all reaching out to a boy on another platform near them. There were a few Golems behind him and The boy was visibly scared, but he was too afraid to jump the gap. The boy was wearing a very strange outfit: he looked like a jester but he had an axe. The others were screaming at him to jump and he was refusing. Graham decided he had to help so he got his sword out and jumped onto the platform. He then quickly swung at one of the Golems. It growled as his sword raked its arm. He then killed the Golem before quickly swinging at another one. He then thruster his sword into its torso, killing it. The third Golem immediately became enraged and it attempted to smash him with its first, but he swiftly jumped out of the way and slashed his arm, striking so hard that the arm came clean off. Graham then jumped on its other arm and climbed up before plunging his sword into the Golem's face. The last Goldman died and Graham jumped off. The boy then spoke.

"You...you saved me!"

The next thing Graham knew, he was in their house, eating a feast. Soon it was over and the one with the brown cloak stood up and spoke.

"Alright, that was a great feast, but it's time we thank you. Welcome to our home. We're the Rangers, a guild. My name is Masato. I'm the leader of the guild. The one with the pink hair is my younger sister Manami. The one with the grenade launcher is Boomer, the quiet one with the sniper is Dodger, and the one you saved is Hiroki. We'd all like to thank you for saving him. If you hadn't been there, Hiroki may have died. Thank you."

Graham then responded.

"Your welcome. My name's Graham. I'm so happy I was there. This happen often?"

Manami then laughed before responding.

"You could say that."

Masato then spoke again.

"Anyway, we're so thankful for what you did. I know you probably get this a lot, but I'd like to officially invite you to join the guild. We could use someone like you."

Graham then spoke.

"I appreciate the offer, but I'm more of a lone wolf. Sorry."

Masato then responded.

"Are you sure? It's dangerous out there. Going alone isn't exactly the smartest idea. Join us."

"Okay. You've got yourself a deal."

Manami then spoke.

"Alright then! Welcome to the Rangers."

"Thanks...I guess."

Manami then giggled and they began to talk amongst each other. Over the next few weeks, Graham became close to each of the members of the Rangers. Masato was the strong, focused leader. Manami was the gentle, frantic sweetheart. Boomer was the loud, arrogant toughie. Dodger was the strong, near-silent marksman. And Hiroki was the confident, fun-loving prankster with a heart of gold. Together they made the best team in all of Ovalon. They were legendary. For the first time since the death game had began, Graham felt something: contentment. He was happy to be here, even if he was trapped in a game.

Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please review.


	5. Chapter 5: Ambush

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 5: Ambush**

**AN: Hey guys, hope you enjoy the chapter.**

Graham and the Rangers were estatic. They'd managed to clear another dungeon, and there was a good chance that they'd found the first boss arena. Masato and Graham were searching the back wall of the dungeon when they found a door of some kind. They couldn't see the handle with their own eyes, but it was definitely there. Masato turned to the others, who were taking a break, and he spoke.

"Guys, I think we've found it! Send a message to all the other guilds! We're gonna kill us a boss!"

They all four nodded and Dodger opened up his menu, quickly typing the message. Masato turned back to the door and he addressed Graham.

"This door is kinda heavy. But we need to check out whatever's in here. If the first boss is really in here, we can't just charge right in. It'd be the death of every guild in the entire game."

Graham nodded and they both opened the door. Light rushed into the room ahead as they entered in. The room was not an arena, like they thought, but it was a small ordinary room with a chest in the middle. They all agreed that it was most likely a trap, so they went back home, dejected and disappointed. They had an opportunity to be heroes, but it didn't happen. Later that night they all gathered in the loft of their house to sort out the loot. Once they were done Masato stood up and addressed them.

"Well, that's the third dungeon this month that didn't have a boss arena. We're running low on options. There's only one other dungeon to search."

Boomer immediately spoke up.

"What, the one on the top of the mountain? That's crazy, man. You know as well of the rest of us that the summit is Grim Reaper territory."

Boomer was of course referring to the Grim Reapers, the infamous murder guild in Arena Online. While most guilds like the White Knights of Ovalon and the Rangers were focused on helping to clear the game, the Grim Reapers murdered players for fun and collected loot. They had claimed the summit of The Rocky Mountains as their territory long ago. Masato then responded.

"I know. But it's not their main base. We just need to schedule our raid around their patrols. Dodger hacked into their systems awhile ago. We need to do this. The other players are counting on us. We need to find that Arena. Tomorrow morning I want you to meet me in the fields to do some grinding. We aren't going in that dungeon until were all level 15. Understood?"

The others nodded and he dismissed them. They all went to bed, not exactly ready to face the long day ahead. The night didn't last long though, and before they knew it they were forced to wake up. They all grinded until they were ready to go into the dungeon, and they headed there immediately. Soon they arrived and they entered into the dungeon. They slowly walked through the dark hallways in search of monsters, but they found none. Soon Manami spoke.

"Where are all the monsters? This doesn't feel very good."

Graham then responded.

"Maybe another group of players cleared it before us?"

Masato then responded.

"There's no way. They would've respawned by now."

Hiroki then interjected.

"Not exactly. The monsters are set to respawn the second the group that killed them leaves the dungeon."

Graham then responded.

"So that means...whoever killed the monsters...they're still here. Be on the lookout."

Soon they heard faint footsteps as well as laughter. Manami spoke again, in a scared and frantic tone.

"Who's in here with us?"

No one dared answer her question as they continued to slowly walk through the dungeon. The faint footsteps slowly grew quieter until they suddenly stopped. Graham, who was in the front, continued to walk until he felt that someone was right in front of him. Graham then found himself cornered by five ghastly figures. Each was wearing a black cloak and a white mask. They each drew a black sword and they began to slowly come towards him, laughing while they did. One thing was clear: they'd been ambushed by the Grim Reapers. They prepared to strike Graham down but before they could Masato ran and jumped in the middle of them; he then threw Graham out of the way and drew his broadsword before turning around and yelling at Graham.

"It was a trap! Graham! Get them out of here!"

Graham and the others tried to warn Masato, but he wouldn't listen. They all watched in horror as the Grim Reapers began to stab him. Masato tried to fight back, and he even managed to kill two or three of them, but ultimately, his fate was sealed. They all watched as the final remaining Grim Reaper plunged his sword into Masato's chest. His HP level slowly dropped to zero and he opened his mouth to speak one last time.

"Graham...take care of them...for me...goodbye..."

Masato immediately exploded into shards of data and the shards vanished into thin air. His killer laughed intensely, obviously proud of what he'd done. Before he knew it, Dodger had drawn his sniper rifle and shot him in the neck, killing him. They then turned to see more Grim Reapers surrounding them. Manami and Hiroki were mourning Masato, but Graham picked them up and forced the, to run to the exit. They all rushed out of the dungeon and went home. A few hours later, they were holding a funeral for him. They all said a few words and put flowers on the grave they bought for him, directly outside of their house. Soon the others went to bed and Graham stayed outside. He couldn't believe. Masato had died to save him, and it was his fault. If Graham hadn't been so afraid,he could've saved himself and Masato would still be there. Graham then wrote a quick letter and left it on his bed before quietly packing up his things and leaving. As he walked away from the house, he turned his head to look on it one more time before speaking.

"I feel bad for leaving them, but I can't deal we the guilt. He's dead because of me, and if I stay, they'll die too. One day I'll return, but I know what I have to do. I'll never forget you guys. Goodbye."

He then turned and walked away, not knowing what lay ahead for him.

Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, I know it's sad, but it had to happen. In the next chapter Graham is paired with Leafa during the raid on the first boss, Goliath. Please review!


	6. Chapter 6: Sticks and Stones

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 6: Sticks and Stones**

**AN: Hey guys, I'm back with chapter 6. Yes, I know I'm on a roll. Anyway, enjoy the chapter, and review with your thoughts. **

It had been about a month since Masato's demise at the hands of the Grim Reapers. Graham had been on his own the whole time. The Rangers were initially sad that he left, but they understood why. Anyway, Graham was in his apartment in Evergreen when all of a sudden he received a message. He then sat up in his bed and opened it up to see that it was a message from Klein. He then read it.

From: Klein

To: Graham

Subject: OMG WE FOUND IT!

Graham, it's Klein. We found the arena. We've sent word out to all the big guilds. We need your help. Goliath's going down. Make sure you bring lots of healing crystals. He's going down, but not easily. Also be prepared to be paired with a partner. I'll see you at the raid. Peace out or whatever. -Klein.

Graham then closed the message and immediately got dressed in his chain mail and jacket before heading out for the square, where he was supposed to meet them. Upon arriving he saw thousands of guild members talking amongst each other. He tried to search around for them but he couldn't find them. He suddenly felt a finger tap him on the shoulder and he immediately turned to find Asuna. She then spoke.

"Good, you got Klein's message. Come on."

Graham nodded before following her through the crowd. Soon she led him to where Kirito and the others were setting up. Asuna prodded Kirito and he immediately addressed Graham after he saw him.

"Graham. Good, you're here. Short and simple, we're raiding the boss. Were gonna go in in waves after Goliath. We're each gonna have a partner. You'll be paired with Leafa."

Leafa then walked up to Graham and spoke.

"Hey Graham."

Graham then nervously responded before nervously chuckling.

"Hey, Sugu..."

Leafa then spoke again.

"What's up with him?"

Asuna then responded.

"Cut him some slack, Leafa, he's been going through a really rough time ever since his guild leader died."

Graham then defended himself.

"No, I'm fine, I'm just tired is all."

Leafa then responded.

"Well then, lets go talk strategy. Come on, I'll buy you breakfast. It'll help you think."

Graham then responded as Leafa led him away.

"Okay, whatever you say."

He then waited until she was out of earshot before whispering to himself.

"I'm doomed."

He then followed Leafa into the market. She bought him a sandwich before handing it to him. Graham then began to slowly eat while he walked. Soon they both sat down at a bench and they began their meal. Leafa finished her sandwich before speaking.

"So, strategy. What weapon are you gonna be using?"

Graham then responded.

"My Iron Sword should do the trick. I've had it for awhile but I just completed my sword skill tree."

Leafa then responded.

"Alright. Sword it is. What about defense?"

"Won't need it. If I take too much damage, I'll swap out with you and heal."

"I guess that works. You ready?"

"Not really. But we need to do this. Goliath's going down."

"Yes he is. Let's get going."

"Thanks for the sandwich, by the way. I'll pay you back after the raid."

Leafa then responded as they walked back to the crowd.

"No, it's good. I don't need you to pay me back."

"No, I insist. How many Ovans was it?"

(Ovans are the currency in a Arena Online. I know it's a weird name but I couldn't come up with anything better.)

"I'm telling you, I don't need you to-"

"Well I want to, because it's the right thing to do. Here. I don't need it anyway."

He then handed he the chrome coins before walking back to the crowd. Soon Kirito spoke.

"Alright, it's time. Everyone grab their partner and get ready to teleport."

They all nodded before teleporting to the dungeon. They then talked amongst themselves. Graham felt someone tap his shoulder and he turned around to see Manami staring back at him. He then spoke.

"Manami? Is that you?"

Manami then responded.

"Yep. It's so great to see you. It's definitely been a while. So, how have you been?"

Graham then responded.

"Pretty good. What about you? Is the guild okay?"

"Yeah. At first it was hard to adjust to being leader, but now I'm getting the hang of it. I hope Masato's proud of me, wherever he is. We talked about disbanding the guild after you left, but Hiroki convinced us otherwise. Well, it was great seeing you. Good luck in today's raid."

"You too."

Manami nodded before turning around and leaving, however she stopped and spoke again.

"Oh, and Graham?"

Graham then responded.

"Yeah?"

Manami then blushed before speaking.

"I've missed you."

She then left and Graham turned to see Leafa, who spoke.

"Who was that?"

"Oh, her? That's Manami. She's...she's a member of my old guild..."

"Oh. Sorry I asked. I know it must be hard. You ready?"

"Definitely. Let's do this."

They both readied their weapons and prepared to enter the arena. Soon they opened the doors and rushed in as light filled the room. They then began to scan the area, looking for Goliath. Soon they found him. He was a gigantic Golem-like creature, with four gigantic arms. He was climbing on the side of the wall. He jumped into the center of the arena and roared, beating on his chest. He then stood there and thousands of players rushed at him, relentlessly striking at Goliath. He stood there, completely still, as if he hadn't taken a scratch, causing the players to pause, confused. He then took the chance to fling him arm at the players; causing them to scatter. Some were crushed, some jumped out of the way, and some were flung off the side of the platform, falling to their deaths. Other players came to replace the ones who'd been killed or injured, but they all met the same fate. One player grabbed onto the side of the platform, hanging on for dear life, and another player went to help him up, but Goliath ripped one of his arms off and threw it at them both, causing them to falls. His arm immediately regrew and he roared once more, even louder than the time before. The surviving players retreated to the entrance, scared out of their wits. They then sat there while Goliath crushed those unfortunate enough to be unable to escape. This was soon interrupted by a scream. The crowd at the entrance parted to look at the source of the scream: Hiroki. He was enraged. He immediately drew his axe and blindly rushed at the creature, ready to kill him. Hiroki relentlessly swung at the creature, but it only made Goliath angrier. Goliath ripped off another arm and smashed it on the ground: it then separated into three boulders, which unfolded and became smaller Golems. He did the same to all four arms, and soon enough Hiroki was surrounded. He desperately tried to find an opening, but it was hopeless. The Golems began to swing at him, lowering his HP. They then threw him back to the crowd. Hiroki landed on the ground with a thud and Manami, Dodger, and Boomer immediately ran to him. Graham ran to him as well and tried to talk to him, squeezing his hand. Eventually, his HP dropped to zero and he said one last word.

"Tha...thank...you..."

He then vanished into thin air. One thing was certain: Hiroki was gone. Graham immediately became enraged, and he drew his sword before blindly rushing at the creature. Leafa drew her sword and flew after him. Dodger loaded his sniper rifle and zoomed in at Goliath's arm sockets, where he saw big red patches of muscle. He then spoke.

"That's it! Goliath's arm sockets! That's his weakness! Everyone! Open fire on his arm sockets, before he grows more arms!"

He then fired a round into one of his arm sockets, causing him to flail his body and growl in anger. Several marksman opened fire on him as Graham continued to rush Goliath. He then spoke.

"I'm David...you're Goliath...and this...is the stone!"

He then jumped up and struck Goliath in his arm socket. He then completely penetrated the deep muscle, causing Goliath's rocky exterior to pop off. What now stood where the once rocky creature stood was anything but human. Goliath had no flesh: instead there stood a creature made of muscle and bone. Goliath roared and review his arms before using one to strike Graham, but he dodged him and thrust his sword into Goliath's forehead. Goliath roared and staggered, his HP dropping slowly. His HP finally reached zero and he roared, glowing as he did. He then exploded into rays of light, and Graham landed on the platform. A box then appeared on Graham's screen saying "Congratulations. You have defeated Goliath." He then went through his item box, searching for the loot. Goliath didn't drop any Ovans, but he did drop something else: a cloak. The cloak was white and on the back there was a blood red cross logo. Graham equipped it before speaking.

"We did it."

Graham couldn't believe it. Goliath had been defeated, but at a heavy price. Out of the hundreds of players who'd entered the arena, over 300 had died, including Hiroki. One thing was certain: if they were gonna defeat the Collective, there would be a few casualties.

Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. In the next chapter, Graham is hired by AOLEG(The Arena Online Law Enforcement Guild) to bring in Atsushi, a high ranking member of the Grim Reapers. Please review!


	7. Chapter 7: The Hunt

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 7: Hunted**

**AN: Hey guys, I'm back with more. Please review!**

It had been a few weeks since the raid on Goliath. After Hiroki's death, Manami had decided to officially disband the guild. She went on to join the White Knights of Ovalon with Boomer, while Dodger went on his own path. Graham was still by himself, but he talked to Kirito and the others often and he went out grinding mobs with Klein once a week. Graham was in Evergreen walking through the market when someone spoke.

"Hey you! With the white cloak! Over here!"

Graham walked in the direction of the voice to see a man wearing a green uniform sitting a table. The man spoke again.

"Young man, am I correct in asuming that you are Graham, former member of the Rangers?"

Graham then responded.

"Depends on who wants to know."

"I do. My name is Commander Stone. I am the leader of AOLEG. It stands for Arena Online Law Enforcement Guild. Were a guild dedicated to apprehending in-game criminals. Son, have you ever heard of the Grim Reapers?"

Graham became visibly angry at the reminder of his enemies exsistence. He responded.

"Yeah. Ive got quite a bone to pick with them too. Why?"

"Well, I've got a job for you. This is Atsushi."

He handed Graham a photo depicting a Grim Reaper without the trademark white mask. he had bright red eyes and jet black hair, and he was holding an axe. The axe was lodged in the shoulder of a player. The player had a bag over his or her head but you could tell they were in pain. Atsushi had a wide grin on his face and it was easy to see that in the picture he was laughing. Commander Stone continued.

"He's a high-ranking member of the Grim Reapers. So high, in fact, that theres a rumor going around that he's right hand man to none other than Kyousuke, the leader of the Grim Reapers. I am about to make an offer you cannot refuse. I am offerring you a fifty thousand Ovan reward for the arrest of Atsushi. Tail him, incapaciate him, and bring him to me. What do you say?"

Graham responded in an enthusiastic tone.

"I get to help bring down the Grim Reapers?! And I'll get paid?! I'd have to be a moron to say no!"

"Alright. Its settled then. Now, I know that it will be near-impossible, but we'd prefer it if Atsushi were unharmed. We're willing to offer a five thousand Ovan bonus if you bring him in unharmed."

"Alright. Youve got yourself a deal. Will I have any help?"

"You'll have two of our best operatives to help you. Their names are Physcho and Frost. Now, let's shake on it."

Graham nodded before shaking his hand.

Later that day...

Graham was in an empty building, preparing to take out Atsushi. Beside him stood Physcho, a shotgun wielding boy with a green cloak, black gloves, and a steel mask. Graham took a deep breath before equipping his sword. Physcho loaded shells into his shotgun before pumping it. They both exited the building and Graham sent a message to Frost, the sniper. He then got a response and he turned to Physcho and spoke.

"Physcho, the target is this way. Lets go."

Physcho silently nodded and they headed down the empty street. The wind could be heard blowing as they searched for Atsushi. Soon they saw him and they both ran after him. They chased him into a building, but he couldn't find him. Physcho then looked at the ceiling, where he found Atsushi. Before he could react, Atsushi dropped down. Physcho aimed his weapon at Atsushi, but he kicked it out of his hands before drawing a weapon of his own: a .44 magnum. He then aimed it at him before pulling the trigger, taking most of his HP. He then kicked the now stunned Physcho down to the ground before shooting him again. As Physcho took one last breath, he heard Atsushi speak.

"Sorry, pal. You dont point guns at me. I point guns at you. Remember that. Look at me. Look at me! Watch me live while you die."

Physcho faded away and Graham screamed before thrusting his sword at Atsushi in rage. Atsushi threw a smoke screen and he was gone before the smoke cleared. Graham then heard footsteps on the roof and he searched for a window. He jumped out of the building and used his sword as a pick to climb it. He then chased him until they ran out of roof. Atsushi jumped to the next building and Graham followed him. He then looked to the right, where he saw Frost, who was set up on the roof. Graham yelled to him.

"Frost! Physcho's dead! Follow me and find a place to jump over! We'll cut him off!"

Frost nodded before getting up and running to the end of the roof he was on. He jumped over to the roof in front of Atsushi, cutting him off. He then jumped and dodged the bullets that Atsushi fired at him until Atsushi ran out of ammo. Graham then walked up to him and pulled a pistol loaded with stun rounds out of a holster before pointing it at Atsushi. He then spoke.

"Alright, pal. I'm been offered money to bring you in, and I get a bonus if you're unharmed, so I would prefer you come along quietly."

Atsushi then laughed before responding.

"Quietly? I won't be doing anything of the sort."

He then used his leg to kick Graham down before using telekinesis to pull Frost's sniper rifle out of his hands and into his. He then aimed it at Frost before shooting him in the chest, killing him instantly. Graham then screamed.

"Frost!"

He then got up and began to chase Atsushi, who was now running away. Graham pulled the stun-round clip out of his pistol before loading it with real bullets. He then began to shoto at Atsushi, trying to incapacitate him. He missed several times, causing Atsushi to laugh before taunting him.

"You know, after having two of your friends die, it sure is good you haven't lost your bonus yet."

Graham then responded.

"Shut your mouth!"

He then shot him in the shoulder, causing him to roll into the hole in between buildings. He held onto the roof with one hand. Graham then ran to him, but he was already jumping off onto the street, using parkour to jump from windowsill to windowsill. Graham then whispered to himself.

"This is not gonna end well..."

He then took a deep breath before jumping down, sliding down the side of the building. He fell on the street with a thud before getting up and running after Atsushi, who wasn't too far off. He tried to shoot him in the leg, but he kept missing. Before he knew it he saw a glint in the roof. He then heard a shot go through the air and looked to see Atsushi get shot through the leg. He then looked towards the source of the glint to see Sinon, who was smiling. He then spoke.

"Sinon?!"

She then responded before leaving.

"What can I say? I was in the area."

Graham then walked up to Atsushi before picking him up. He then waited for the AOLEG officers to arrive and take him.

Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please review!


	8. Chapter 8: The Blackgate Mystery

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 8: The Blackgate Mystery**

**AN: Hey guys. Enjoy the chapter, and happy Thanksgiving. **

It was early in the morning. Graham woke up in his apartment and stretched, yawning as the morning light filled the bedroom of his small apartment in Evergreen. Graham didn't have a lot of time to earn Ovans so he could only afford an apartment in the starting area of the game, which made sense anyway, since Graham was almost never there anyway. Anyway, he got up and got into his inventory before getting the ingredients for a sweet roll out and carried them out to the kitchen. Soon he had made himself a sweet roll and he ate it on his porch before going inside and getting ready for the day. Soon he got a message, and he looked to see that it was from Leafa.

From: Leafa

To: Graham

Subject: Urgent Message

Graham, something weird is going on down at the Blackgate PvP arena. I need you to meet me there. There's a marker on your map. Bye.

Graham then groaned. Ever since they'd been trapped in the game Graham's crush on Suguha had only grown, but she was focused on clearing the game. He didn't blame her, as survival always came first no matter what world you were in, but what he felt for Sugu was too strong. Her black hair and her eyes...he was mesmerized by her. Her avatar, Leafa, was pretty too, but it was her personality and what kind of person she was that stood out to him the most. He knew that she most likely wouldn't return his feelings anyway, she barely knew him(Which, due to him being such big of a loner, was his fault.) he was a whole year younger, and he wasn't even from Japan. And even if she did, what would everyone else think? Asuna was the only one who knew about his apparently obvious crush on Sugu, and she was fine with it, but Kirito was her older brother, or cousin if you wanna look at it from an official standpoint, but he'd been raised as her older brother and who knows how'd he'd respond to someone wanting to date his little sister. It didn't matter anyway, because Graham knew that as soon as he saw her face, virtual or not, he would lose himself and he would be lucky to get a squeak to come out of his mouth, let alone a full blown conversation. He then turned his attention to the real matter at hand-Blackgate. Blackgate was one of Arena Online's many PvP arenas. PvP arenas were similar to the boss arenas but they weren't connected to dungeons and they didn't contain a boss. Instead, PvP arenas served as places where players could compete in death match style matches to earn Ovans and new skill trees. In addition, during PvP, Archer turned respawning on, so you couldn't die in a PvP arena, but in order for Archer to make sure everybody didn't just stay in the PvP arenas so they could survive, he developed the wager system-every time a player entered into a PvP match, he had to pay a certain amount of Ovans, which he may or may not earn back due to his performance in the match. As the day goes on and matches occurred, the amount of Ovans you'd have to give before playing grew substantially bigger, up until midnight, where PvP arenas shut down until the next morning and the wager system reset. Graham had no idea what the "weird thing" that Suguha had seen over at Blackgate could be, but he had to check it out, so he would. Plus, it was an excuse to see Suguha...yeah, Graham was gone already. He got his stuff ready before heading out and teleporting to Blackgate. He then arrived and he immediately began to search for Leafa. He soon found her standing next to the registration booth. She saw him and waved before speaking.

"Hey Graham. Sorry to call you out on such sort notice, but this is important."

Graham's cheeks turned red as he looked at her, he couldn't help it, she was really pretty, and thinking about was kind of embarrassing. He put his hand on his collar, pretending to adjust it so she wouldn't see he was blushing, thinking to himself while he did.

_Only 15 years old and you're already hopelessly in love with a girl. What a spaz!_

He then walked over to her before speaking.

"It's okay. I needed something to do anyway. So, what's going on?"

Leafa then responded.

"Earlier today, there were some 1v1 matches going on, three in a row to be exact-with each one having an opponent with a very similar outfit-grey cloak, green mask-but they were all three different players. They all three won their matches, and then comes the weirdest part. Immediately after their matches, their opponents from those matches all passed out and died. We think they were somehow murdered by the guys in the grey cloaks."

Graham interrupted her.

"Wait, we? Who's we?"

"AOLEG. They hired me to come check it out. That's one of the reasons I asked you to meet me here-you brought in Atsushi...great job by the way...so you're the best outside help there is, plus it was an excuse to make sure you didn't get yourself killed yet."

"I'm thankful for the sentiment, but I don't consider that to have been a great job. I saw two AOLEG soldiers die right in front of me because I wasn't careful enough.."

Graham's face began to turn red with rage as he played Physcho and Frost's deaths by the hand of Atsushi in his head over and over again. They'd both been gunned down, and all because he'd been too focused on the reward and the outcome instead of the mission itself. They'd died because Graham wasn't cautious enough. What was worse was the knowledge that if Sinon hadn't of showed up at the last minute, he would've gotten himself killed too. Graham then stopped thinking about it and continued.

"So, guys in the cloaks. How'd they do it?"

"Well, I have reason to believe that they somehow cheated the system, but we need to know for sure. We need you to fight them in a 1v3."

"Wait, what?! Ok, I'd like to know how we jumped from 'reason to believe' to me having to fight them. And why 1v3 anyway? If they killed their opponents, what's to say I won't die too?"

Leafa then shrugged before lifting up her hand to show a pile of Ovans. Graham took them before mumbling.

"I resent you..."

Before Graham knew it, he was inside of the PvP arena, preparing to fight all three of the grey cloaked players who were now suspected murderers. The countdown to the start of the match began as Graham gripped his trusty iron sword tightly. He took a deep breath before looking around at his surroundings. Blackgate was themed after a high-security prison, so the area they were in resembled the area where then herded prisoners into their cells. The countdown kept going on and it reached five. Graham then counted down in his head.

_Five...four...three...two...one!_

He then jumped back and prepared himself as one of his opponents rushed at him, firing wildly with his sub-machine gun. Graham dodged most of the bullets but he took one in the shoulder, causing him to miss as he attempted to strike his attacker. This gave him the chance to swing his knife at Graham, causing him to die and respawn. Graham then spoke.

"Alright, I can respawn, so it's ok to make mistakes like that. Which is good, because I'm a screwup. Time for round two, guys!"

He then rushed at the person who'd killed him but he missed. Another one came at him and thrusted his dagger in his direction, but Graham ducked down and swiped his legs out from under him before pulling out a pistol and shooting him in the chest, causing him to die and respawn. Graham then used his sword to push the other one back and them took out a knife before throwing it at him, killing him. The score changed to 2-1 as the two both respawned. They rushed at him in rage and he dodged before using his sword to score two more points. Soon he was at 7-1 and he was winning, but the third opponent hadn't even moved for the whole match. Graham watched as he pulled out an assault rifle made out of some strange custom metal. He them loaded it with a custom magazine and Leafa yelled from the podium where she had been watching the match.

"Graham, that's a custom made gun, made using the crafting skill. They're made to shoot long-lasting poison rounds. They used them to poison them so when the match ended it would take effect! Whatever you do, do not let them hit you with those!"

Graham then equipped his shield and rushed at the one with the gun. He began to fire wildly at Graham, who deflected the bullets with his shield before killing him with his sword. The other two loaded their guns and he threw his sword at them, knocking them down. He pulled out a pistol and began to fire at them, killing them both. He wasn't paying attention, however, and the other player rushed at him from behind, having respawned. He dodged, but the player still managed to rake him with his knife. The other two players rushed at him but he knocked out over to the other side of the room and killed the other before looking to the other player, who threw his knife at Graham. Graham ducked out of the way and caught it in mid-air before throwing it back at the player, who shot one of the poison bullets at him. Graham barely dodged it as the player died. The match then ended 12-1 and Leafa and Graham subdued the three players before arresting them, AOLEG soon arrived to arrest them. Graham walked over to Leafa, who spoke.

"Hey, thanks for helping me today. You were amazing out there."

Graham then blushed a light shade of red at the compliment before responding,

"It was nothing special. I just got lucky today."

Leafa giggled before responding.

"Well, now that we're done, wanna go grab some lunch."

"Absolutely, I'm starving."

They then began to walk to the exit and Leafa spoke once more.

"I'm buying, by the way."

Graham laughed as they walked there.

Hey guys, hope you enjoyed the chapter. In the next one, Graham and Leafa explore a dungeon alone and find the second boss arena, where they are forced to fight the Kraken-alone.


	9. Chapter 9: The Kraken

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 9: The Kraken**

**AN: Hey guys, I'm here with chapter 9! And it's fluffy! Yay! Enjoy!**

Graham was sitting in his apartment, whistling to himself, when he got a message. He opened it to see it was from Asuna before reading it.

From: Asuna

To: Graham

Subject: Important Business

Graham, we've found the arena, but the monsters have no doubt respawned in the dungeon by now. Were sending you with Leafa to clear it. Then we'll gather all the guilds and start the raid.-P.S. That's an order. Asuna Yuki :)

Graham then frowned. He wasn't even a member of The White Knights of Ovalon and Asuna still bossed him around. All his life, people were pushing him around. His parents made him move to Japan, Archer trapped him in Arena Online, and now this? This was getting out of hand. He then thought to himself.

_This is an outrage...but I can't let Sugu go alone..._

He then looked out the window and sighed before getting up and getting ready. He then left his apartment before teleporting to Aquaris, where the dungeon was located. He arrived in a split second before looking around. He couldn't find Leafa, so he waited for her. He ended falling asleep on the ground and he snored loudly as Leafa arrived. She looked down and shrugged before equipping a pistol and aiming it in the air. She shot a round into the sky, startling Graham awake. He then spoke.

"Sheesh, Leafa, you don't have to wake me up like that."

She then giggled before responding in a happy tone.

"Well I felt like it. Come on, let's head out for the dungeon."

Graham then scratched his head before speaking.

"What? We're at the dungeon, Sugu."

"No. The dungeon is that way. Check your map."

Graham then pulled up his map before looking to see that Leafa was indeed right. Graham then grumbled before speaking.

"Aww man, I typed in the wrong coordinates! I should really pay attention to map markers better...let's go..."

Leafa giggled and Graham spoke.

"Whatever, you could've made the same mistake."

Leafa giggled some more before responding playfully.

"Could've, but didn't."

Graham groaned, causing her to playfully laugh again. After a while the sun went down and it became dark. Leafa suggested they rest for the night so they sat down and made a fire. Leafa offered to cook dinner. She then began to cook some chicken and soon it was done. She made it into two sandwiches and handed one to Graham. Graham said a quick thank you before biting the sandwich. He swallowed it before speaking.

"That was...the most amazing thing...I've ever eaten."

Leafa then blushed a light shade of pink before speaking.

"It's nothing, really, I just..."

"Your just being modest, is all. Your an awesome cook! Way better than Asuna, for sure...don't tell her that though...it'd hurt her feelings."

Leafa nodded and Graham fell asleep. Leafa took a deep breath before leaning on a rock behind her. Graham, who was beside her, started to lean towards her, his head landing on her shoulder. He smiled in his sleep and Leafa sighed before relaxing. Graham leaned further and his head fell from her shoulders and landed on her breasts. Leafa became annoyed and spoke.

"Wake up!"

Graham then woke up and his smile was replaced by a puzzled look. He then looked at Leafa, who was visibly embarrassed and angry, before looking down at where his head was, before looking back at her. He then blushed, scooted back and spoke.

"I'm sorry!"

Leafa then giggled before responding.

"Your such a dork."

Graham groaned before leaning against his own rock and relaxing again. He then thought to himself as his struggled to fall asleep.

_Great, you embarrassed yourself! Idiot! And now she's laughing! What is with chicks and giggling at me?! Is it some secret code for girls? Every girl I talk to giggles at me! And it's not like a little school girl giggle either. It's like a full blown making fun of me giggle! _

His face turned red with embarrassment and slight anger and Leafa let out one last playful giggle before relaxing. She then thought to herself.

_Look at him. He's so embarassed! And is he...mad? He's kinda cute when he's mad...whatever, just get over it, you need to focus on fighting the boss. The...Kraken, wasn't it? Yeah, the second boss is the Kraken. Set HP is over 500. Is very weak to fire...he also has a weak spot somewhere...no way to no know where though...it's a good thing I decided to read the strategy guide before I logged in..._

She then looked back at Graham, who was peacefully sleeping. She then thought to herself some more.

_He's so cute when he sleeps...ugh! Suguha, stop! You need to focus! Ever since the day you met this guy, it's been nothing but this! Ever since the very second you met! He looked at you, said "Hi. My name's Graham." and you were gone. Your lucky school didn't start, you would've flunked! Why am I yelling at myself in my thoughts?! I'm confused! Does he even like me? I mean, it seems like it, but then again, I was sure before with him. Should I just go for it? I mean, he's cute, and funny, but he can be an idiot, so I should just tell him how I feel before he gets himself killed. He doesn't have time for me anyway, though, I mean, he's a lone wolf. And why is he such a loner, anyway?! I mean, I know moving from America to Japan probably wasn't the greatest, but why is he so...distant? He's always so dead set on being alone. What is it with guys and being alone? Why won't he just get his head in the game and join our guild? He was in one before, but he left at the first sign of tragedy. Why aren't you asleep yet, Sugu?!_

She then sighed before relaxing against the rock, desperately trying to go to sleep. She finally fell asleep. A while later the sun came up and Graham woke up. He then spoke.

"Sugu! It's morning."

Leafa did not wake up, but she spoke in her sleep.

"Oh, Graham..."

Graham's expression changed into a puzzled look and he shook her awake, speaking while he did.

"Sugu, wake up!"

Leafa woke up and yawned before looking up at Graham. Graham then spoke.

"Sugu, what did you just say?"

Leafa realized that he heard her, so she tried to deny it.

"Nothing."

"I know it wasn't nothing."

"It wasn't anything!"

"Was too."

Leafa decided he couldn't be convinced, so she did the next best thing. She tripped him. Graham groaned in pain before speaking.

"Oww..."

Leafa then giggled. Graham spoke.

"Again with the giggling?"

Leafa stood up and started walking toward the dungeon before speaking.

"Come on, let's go."

Graham shrugged before following her. Whatever she had or had not said didn't matter, as the mission always came first. He just wished she'd stop giggling. Soon they arrived at the dungeon and they went inside. The monsters didn't give them any time to prepare, as several Toads came at them out of nowhere. Graham used his sword to dispatch most of them, and Leafa took care of the rest. Soon they arrived at the arena entrance but as soon as they did four Toads came up and knocked down four stones pillars, blocking them in. Graham then spoke.

"Great, now we're stuck. What now?!"

Leafa took a deep breath before speaking.

"We have to go in. We have to beat the Kraken...by ourselves..."

Graham then spoke.

"I'm...starting to have second thoughts...right now..."

Leafa ran to the door and Graham groaned before mumbling.

"This is not gonna end well..."

He then walked over to her before helping her open the door. Unlike Goliath, who hid from them during the raid, the Kraken was right on display for them to see. Graham turned to Leafa before speaking.

"Well, this is it. Anything you wanna say?"

Leafa then spoke.

"Let's do this."

She activated her wings before flying over to the Kraken. Graham equipped his trusty iron sword and ran towards them. They both struck the Kraken at the same time, causing him to reer backward in pain. He pulled a gigantic broadsword out before thrusting it at them. It missed Leafa but it hit Graham, sending him flying towards the end of the platform. He almost fell off but he grabbed the end if it and spoke.

"I'm ok!"

Leafa then flew over to the Kraken. Distracting him while Graham got back up. Graham un-equipped his sword and equipped an assualt rifle, which he then loaded. He then fired three shots at the beast, causing three of his tentacles to fall off of his back. Leafa flew around to his back and saw that there was a red flashy patch that was hidden behind the tentacles. She then spoke.

"Graham! His weakness is behind his back!"

Graham nodded before getting his sword back out and rushing at the Kraken. Leafa attempted to thrust her sword into his weakness but he used his tentacles to hit her down. Graham screamed.

"Sugu!"

He then rushed at the Kraken in anger. He screamed as he jumped over his head, grabbed his tentacle, and used it to swing over to his back. He then thrust his sword into the boss, causing his tentacles to fall off. He then swung around to the front and swiped him three times, killing him. He then exploded into ray of light. Graham landed on the ground and Leafa spoke.

"That was amazing...the boss attacking me really made you angry...can I ask why?"

Graham then blushed before speaking.

"I'm really protective of my friends."

She then giggled and Graham groaned once more.

Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please review.


	10. Chapter 10: Gambit Part 1

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 10: Gambit Part 1**

**AN: Hey guys, I hope you enjoy the chapter! Please review!**

Leafa was walking through the courtyard of the castle in Aquaris that served as the base of the White Knights of Ovalon when she got a message from Commander Stone.

From: Commander Stone

To: Leafa

Subject: Official AOLEG Business

Leafa,I'd like to start by stating that these are dire times were dealing with here. Crime is higher than ever. More innocent players die every day. I'll skip to the point. Kyousuke, the leader of the Grim Reapers, was murdered last night by Gambit, a former member of the Suicide Squad-a rival murder guild-who killed his guild-mates to get into the Grim Reapers before killing Kyousuke and submitting himself as the new leader of the Grim Reapers. We believe he's planning to kill every player in the game. He must be stopped. We'd like to ask you and the rest of your guild to help bring him in, along with some outside help-Dodger, former member of the Rangers, and Graham, or as he's been nicknamed around here-The White Warrior. Also, Gambit is too dangerous alive, so we're asking that you kill him, no matter how difficult that might be. Goodbye, and good luck.

Leafa closed her menu. She then looked to Sinon, who was currently talking with Klein. Leafa groaned-Sinon and Klein's relationship was so stupid it was annoying. It was very apparent that they were both very attracted to each other, but their personalities were always clashing and as a result they were always arguing. Leafa knew that eventually they'd both relent and get together, but for now, there was this. Sinon finally finished talking to Klein and Leafa spoke, startling her.

"When are you gonna tell him that you like you?"

Sinon responded, deciding not to defend herself at all.

"When you finally tell Graham how you feel about him."

Leafa instantly turned red in the face and defended herself.

"I don't...what...what are you...what are you getting at?!"

"Don't even bother, Suguha, Asuna and I both agree that it's super obvious you like him. Heck, Lisbeth and Silica even have a betting pool on when you'll ask him out for crying out loud!"

"Asuna and I have one for you and Klein."

Sinon frowned and Leafa spoke.

"Hey, listen. We need to get everyone together. AOLEG wants us to take out this guy. He killed the leader of the Grim Reapers and he's planning to kill every player in the game."

Sinon then responded.

"Well, let's do it."

Leafa nodded and Sinon went to go get everyone else. Leafa then pulled up her menu and sent a message to Graham.

From: Leafa

To: Graham

Subject: Read This

Hey, meet me at White Knights HQ. It's important.-Suguha.

She then sat down and after a while she got a response.

From: Graham

To: Leafa

Subject: Re: Read This

Alright, I'll head over right away. Is something wrong?

She then typed a response.

From: Leafa

To: Graham

Subject: Re: re: Read this

Sort of. You'll find out when you get here. It's urgent, so use teleport. Please.

Leafa then leaned into the bench she was sitting on, but before she could relax she was interrupted by the arrival of Kirito, Asuna, Klein, Silica, Lisbeth, Sinon, and Dodger. Dodger then spoke.

"So, what's this about?"

Leafa then filled them in. Soon they sat down and began to wait for Graham, when they interrupted by a loud crash. They then looked to the entrance, where Graham now sat, huddled on the ground next to the gate, which was un-opened. It was clear that Graham had somehow fell from the top of the fence. Graham then spoke.

"Sorry...I typed in the coordinates wrong...again...ow..."

Leafa then spoke.

"I'll get the ice."

She then went inside and came back out, holding a bag of ice. She put it on his head and held it there. She then spoke.

"You really ought to work on that coordinates thing. It's gonna get you killed one of these days if your not careful."

Graham then responded.

"You have no faith in me, do you? Now, what's the emergency? Are you alright? Is this some kind of guild meeting? Is that...Dodger?!"

Dodger then said a quiet hello.

"Hey."

Graham walked up to Dodger and spoke.

"Where have you been? Why haven't you joined the White Knights, like Manami and Boomer?!"

Dodger then responded.

"I could ask the same of you. Were both lone wolves. And apparently, we both have the same taste in jobs."

"Wait, you're a gun for hire for AOLEG too?"

"You could say that. So, what's going on, Leafa? Why'd Commander Stone ask me to meet you guys here? And what's with this blue-haired chick? She looks exactly like me. Blue hair, sniper rifle...it's kinda creepy."

Leafa filled them all in and Graham stared at her in disbelief. He then spoke.

"Wait...Kyousuke is dead?! I could barely catch Atsushi, who, by the way, was Kyousuke's hand man, and he goes and gets murdered by this 'Gambit' guy? Who is this dude?!"

Leafa then responded.

"Obviously someone with a lot of skill in the deception department. By the sound of the report, he just snuck up to Kyousuke while he was relaxing and stabbed him in the back with a poisoned dagger."

"So, where is he now, Sugu?"

Leafa then responded.

"Apparently, he's hiding out in the arena in The Rocky Mountains. And if he's as dangerous as Commander Stone says...he'll have Grim Reapers with him."

"Well, then we should head out."

Leafa nodded and they all got up and headed for the gate. Graham tripped and fell on the ground and Leafa ran to him, helping him up and helping him walk over to the gathe, not trusting him to walk by himself for the moment. As they left Manami watched through a window of the castle before sighing to herself.

"Why? Why does Graham like Leafa? Was it not obvious that I liked him? We totally had something there. This sucks!"

Boomer then walked up to her and spoke, startling her.

"What's the matter, Manami?"

Manami then responded.

"It's Graham. And Leafa."

"Oh. Well, I know it's hard to watch, but the best thing you can do is be happy for him. Your his friend, it's what friends do. Besides, it's not guaranteed he'll end up with Leafa."

"Thanks, Boomer."

"Who knows? He could meet some random token lolly somewhere out there and end up with her."

Manami grumbled and Boomer laughed before consoling her, making sure he knew he was kidding.

(Sorry about that token lolly line, I just wanted to poke some quick fun at the first season of the show and how Kirito had his own little harem consisting of Asuna, Silica, and Lisbeth. Trust me when I say that Leafa and Manami are the only two people who have any sort of feelings for Graham. I will probably pair Manami with something eventually, I'm thinking Dodger maybe, but maybe I'll pair her with someone else. It just won't be Graham. Thank you.)

Later...

Graham and the others were in the dungeon connected to the now empty first arena. They were almost to the entrance to the arena when they encountered a player wearing a tan cloak and black gloves, who was using a mop to clean the dungeon floor. He waved at them and they waved back before walking to the entrance. While they weren't looking he crouched and snuck up to Klein before picking his pocket, but he stepped on a twig. Klein turned around and picked him up, lifting him in the air. He then spoke.

"Why are you pickpocketing me? Who are you?"

The slightly dim-witted would-be theif then answered in a cowardly voice.

"I'm sorry. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Grognak, master theif, and part-time dungeon-janitor."

Klein then looked at him with a puzzled look on his face before responding.

"Part...time...dungeon janitor?"

Grognak then awkwardly chuckled before responding.

"Yeah, I'm not really that good of a theif, so I clean dungeons for a living. I know it's not the most respectable job out there, but it pays the bills and keeps me alive."

Klein decided to let him go but instead of turning and running like expected he followed them before speaking.

"Wait, are you going into that arena? Cuz I just saw some scary looking murderer dudes go inside there and they were armed to the teeth. I barely had time to hide in the dirt. Seriously, don't go in there! It's dangerous!"

Klein turned and spoke.

"Well, we have to."

Grognak then responded.

"Well, I'm going in too. I hate to see people die, but I might be able to help you...plus if you do die I can loot your corpses."

Klein groaned before relenting, signaling Grognak to come with them. They then prepared to open the dungeon doors.

Hey guys, hope you enjoyed the chapter. I really hope you guys liked my attempts at humor in this chapter. Also, don't worry about Grognak. Our new dim-witted theif friend will be around to pick-pockets and offer comic relief for a long time. Please review and look forward to the next one!


	11. Chapter 11: Gambit Part 2

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 11: Gambit Part 2**

**AN: Hey guys, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter. I'm really enjoying writing this story, especially because the design decision of setting it in my own fictional VRMMORPG really let's me dictate the settings and monsters as well as the rules of Arena Online themselves. I hope Ovalon is as captivating as a setting as I think it is. BTW, this chapter is gonna be intense.**

Graham and the others were very, very, very nervous. They were about to enter into a room filled with a bunch of in-game criminals who were planning on murdering every player in the game, and they most likely weren't going to be very happy about a group of visitors. Furthermore, they were being accompanied by the most dim-witted thief in perhaps the history of the world, virtual or not, and this guy was either going to-A. Stand in a corner, watch them die, and then loot their stuff, B. Get in the way and get himself or someone else killed, C. Watch the fight while eating popcorn and cheering for whoever is winning, or D. All of the above. Graham sighed before turning to Leafa and speaking.

"You ready for this?"

Leafa gave him one silent nod before turning back to the task at hand: the door. Graham was very nervous: he just could not shake the feeling that someone in their group was going to suffer some horrible fate that day, possibly him, or even worse-Suguha. Graham immediatley turned to other thoughts, not wanting to even face the possibility that Leafa could die. Soon they opened the door and walked inside. Several Grim Reapers were currently pouring steel and various other metals in a forgery that sat where Goliath had died so many months ago. It was clear they were crafting special weapons. In the back of the room stood a player who they immediately identified as Gambit. He had bright green spiky hair, a black leather cloak, and he was armed to the teeth. He then spoke.

"Hello, friends. Welcome to Grim Reaper HQ. How may I murder you today?"

Kirito then spoke.

"Hey, I don't know what your deal is, but were here to kill you."

Gambit then responded.

"Well then, your with my good friends at AOLEG. Well, if you wanna kill me, your gonna have to get through them."

The Grim Reapers began to rush at them. They all drew their weapons and began to fight back. Several of the Grim Reapers fell to their blades, but they were numerous, and more came to take the place of the ones who'd just died. Klein used his sword to push back two Grim Reapers in front of him. He then jumped past them and rushed at Gambit, preparing to strike. Gambit used his telekinesis to throw him against the wall and then throw him back onto the arena floor. Sinon then ran to him, desperately trying to get him to speak. Meanwhile, Graham and Leafa were fighting two Grim Reapers, but they were pushing them back. They threw Graham back, causing Leafa to rage. Grognak sat back against the entrance, eating a sandwich and watching the fight. Graham looked at him and thought to himself.

_Guess the correct answer was C. _

Kirito and Asuna were desperately trying to break through to Gambit, but before they could, Leafa used his wings to fly above them, taking out as many Grim Reapers as she could as she made her way to Gambit. Gambit smiled before drawing a sword and meeting Leafa's incoming strike with his own. They both grappled, desperately trying to break through to the other. Gambit broke through, but Leafa dived back before kicking him down. She then began to relentlessly strike him, but he knocked her down. Graham screamed from the other side of the room and rushed at him, but he was knocked back as well. Gambit prepared to kill Graham, but before he could a shit tore through the air and went straight into his chest. He then looked to see Dodger, standing up, sniper rifle smoking. It was clear that Dodger had shot him. Gambit fell to his knees and gasped before dying. He disappeared. Meanwhile, Sinon was holding the wounded Klein in her arms. She then spoke.

"Klein, you have to stay with me! I have to tell you something! I...I...I love you!"

Klein's expression changed from painful to surprised. He then responded.

"I...I love you too. I'm gonna stay. I'm gonna stay, Sinon!"

Tears streamed down the two faces as they leaned in to kiss. The kiss was very brief, but it felt like it was forever for the two. Soon Klein was healed and Sinon helped him walk out of the arena. Graham and Leafa incapacitated the Grim Reapers, waiting for AOLEG officers to come and arrest them. Grognak got up and spoke.

"So, can you guys leave now? I wanna go to sleep, I got work in the morning."

Kirito then responded.

"Wait...you...sleep here?"

Grognak responded.

"Yeah...I got kicked out by the murderer dudes. Now I can finally have a place to sleep."

Asuna then chimed in.

"Look, Grognak, is it? It isn't right for anyone to have to sleep on an arena floor. Hey, look, Kirito and I run a guild, and I think we could arrange for you to have a room in the guild HQ."

Grognak then responded.

"Really? But, what about the rent?"

Kirito then responded.

"There wouldn't be any. But you'd have to work. Grognak, we're officially inviting you to join our guild staff as the official guild janitor."

Grognak smiled and responded.

"That would be awesome! I'd have my own room, I'd clean the castle, and most importantly, I could pick pockets on the side..."

"What was that?"

"Nothing. I will gladly accept the position."

They then left the arena. They were all happy before the threat of Gambit was nor more, and the Grim Reapers had to be finished.

Hey guys, hope you enjoyed the chapter. In the next one, Graham goes one on one against the Phoenix, the third boss in the game. Please review!


	12. Chapter 12: Trial by Fire

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 12: Trial by Fire**

**AN: Hey guys, enjoy the chapter! Please review!**

Graham was in Furyona, the fire region of Ovalon, when he stumbled upon a dungeon. He then spoke.

"A dungeon? Cool. I could use the XP and loot."

He then entered the dungeon. Immediately he was attacked by Flaming Horses, the trademark enemy of Furyona. He drew his sword and rushed at them, attacking them. He then used his sword to block their attacks before striking again. Soon they were dead and more Flaming Horses took their place. Soon he was surrounded and he un-equipped his sword before pulling out a smoke grenade. He escaped and attacked them with his sword, killing them. Soon some Flaming Golems came, surrounding him and attempting to strike him. He dodge out of the way, causing them to strike each other instead. He then killed them before rushing to the back of the dungeon. He found a huge door before speaking.

"Is this the...entrance to the boss arena?"

He then inspected it some more.

"It certainly seems like it, but I can't get ahold of Leafa and the others. Well, I guess I can take care of it by myself."

He then opened the doors. He saw a huge bird who appeared to be on fire. It was velar the was the Phoenix. He then spoke.

"I'm probably gonna regret this decision..."

He drew his sword before rushing at the Phoenix. The Phoenix flew down and began to breath fire at him. Graham swiftly dodged before jumping up and striking him in the back, but it did nothing. He then fell down and scratched his head before speaking.

"So I'm guessing he can't be damaged this way...well, crap."

He dodged out of the way as the Phoenix flew down, attempting to pick him up with his talons. Graham struck him as he flew, but it only angered him. He then breathed fire at Graham, and Graham dodged. Graham looked at his mouth, which was now empty of fire, to see a red patch on his throat. He then spoke.

"That...that's his weakness! That's where I should strike him!"

He then jumped up and struck him there. He reeled back and screamed before raking Graham with his talons. Graham rolled to the entrance, his HP now very low. He watched as the Phoenix threw an egg at him, summoning a miniature Phoneix. Graham searched through his items, panicking. He then found something that stuck out to him: Staff of the Familiar. He read the description.

**Summons a Familiar for 60 seconds. If it does not contain a familiar, it will capture one. Use wisely.**

Graham equipped it before aiming it at the miniature phoenix. He captured it before summoning it. It attacked the bigger Phoenix, causing him to reel. Graham healed himself before equipping his sword and rushing back at the Phoenix. He dodged as it breathed fire at him. He the struck the Phoenix in its weak spot once more, killing him. His new Familiar ran to him, and he petted it before speaking.

"So, if you my new Familiar, you need a name. How about Rusty?"

The phoenix stared back at him and he spoke.

"Rusty it is."

Rusty disappeared back into the staff and Graham ran to the defeated Phoenix, trying to see what loot it dropped. It had a strange magic sword. He then read the name, confused.

"Flaming Fury? What is this?"

He shrugged before speaking again.

"Well, there's only one way to find out. Lisbeth."

He then exited the arena. Before he knew it, he was in Lisbeth's Blacksmith Shop in Aquaris. He waited patiently in the front. Soon Lisbeth came to the front and she spoke.

"Graham? What are you doing here?"

Graham spoke.

"Well, I just completed a one man raid on the Phoenix, and it dropped a sword. I was wondering if you could tell me what kind of sword it is."

Lisbeth then nodded before responding.

"I can do it. Let's see it."

Graham pulled out the sword and put it on the table in front of her. It was like a normal sword, but it had a curved handle and a notch in the sword to give it speed. Lisbeth examined it before speaking.

"It's called Flaming Fury. It's a one of a kind flaming sword. It does 35 damage. About 15 more damage than that iron sword you've been using. Haven't you had that thing since the beginning of the game?"

Graham nodded. He picked the sword back up and thanked Lisbeth as he left the store. He couldn't believe it! He was now the proud owner of a one of a kind sword, plus a new Familiar. He was so happy!

Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.


	13. Chapter 13: Initiation

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 13: Initiation**

**AN: Hey guys, enjoy the chapter.**

Graham was sleeping in his apartment when he woke up. He sat up in his bed to see the sun shining. He rubbed his eyes before getting out of bed and walking out of his apartment. He then headed down the street before teleporting to Aquaris. As soon as he arrived he headed out for the White Knights HQ. Soon he arrived and he saw Grognak, who was wearing his new guild-janitor uniform. Grognak still appeared the same, but instead of a brown cloak he wore a cloak consisting of red and white, the two trademark colors of the guild. He waved at Graham, greeting him.

"Hey, Graham. What brings you here today?"

Graham then responded.

"Nothing really big. Sugu just asked me to meet her, is all."

Grognak then responded.

"Oh, that. Hey, when are you gonna suck it up and tell her how you feel, dude?"

"You...I...what are you...getting at?!"

"It's kinda obvious."

"Like when you pick pocket people? By the way, I'd like my pouch back."

"How did you...how?!"

"We'll, your not exactly the best thief. Stay safe, Grognak."

Graham went inside and Grognak sighed as he continued to sweep the ground in front of the gate. Graham then walked inside the courtyard and looked around, searching for Suguha. Soon he ran into Kirito, who spoke.

"Graham. That's funny, I wasn't expecting you today. Looking for someone?"

Graham then responded.

"Yeah. Sugu asked me to meet her."

Kirito then responded.

"Well, I just saw her go inside. Check the mess hall."

Graham nodded before heading inside. He entered the mess hall to see the lights were off. He was about to leave when the lights suddenly came on. Leafa, Asuna, Klein, Sinon, Silica, and Lisbeth all jumped out and Graham looked up to see a banner that said "Graham's Intervention" in bright red letters. He then spoke.

"What the...what the what?!"

Asuna then spoke.

"It's an intervention. For you. About being a lone wolf."

Leafa then walked up to Graham and poked him in the chest with her finger before speaking.

"You. You went out by yourself and almost died fighting the Phoenix. By yourself!"

Graham then responded.

"Ok, who told Sugu about that?!"

Lisbeth scuffed her shoe against the ground and Graham spoke again, angry.

"Seriously? Lisbeth, you know Sugu freaks out about stuff like that! And why are you so mad anyway? What am I, your property?!"

Leafa then responded.

"Well EXCUSE ME for caring about you!"

Graham then paused before responding.

"I'm sorry. I'm just used to being on my own."

"We'll it needs to stop. Your going to get yourself killed if you go alone. You should be with a guild."

"For the last time, I'm not joining! You can't make me!"

Kirito walked in and interrupted.

"No, we can't. But we can challenge you. Graham, I challenge you to a duel. If you win, you go back to being a lone wolf and there won't be any more interventions. But if I win, you join the guild. What do you say?!"

Graham then thought to himself about this.

_Are you kidding me? He'd be almost guaranteed to win. He's level 50, I'm only level 35. And I can't join the guild. I just can't. That didn't end so well the last time and it totally won't end well this time. But...I don't wanna seem like a jerk...not any more than I already have, anyway. And I'd be practically spitting in Kirito's face if I didn't accept the challenge. Whatever, I've got a one of a kind sword, I can do this._

Graham then took a deep breath before responding confidently.

"You know what, Kirito? I accept. Bring it on, guild leader."

A few minutes later...

Graham was lying on the arena floor, defeated. He then spoke.

"How did he beat me?!"

Leafa then walked up to him and spoke.

"Doesn't matter how. All that matters now is that you have to join the guild."

She then helped Graham up. Graham then spoke.

"Yeah. Do you forgive me?"

Leafa nodded and Graham spoke again.

"Alright, now that that's settled, I'm gonna go find out where my room is."

Graham said a quick goodbye. He then headed to the castle door, but Asuna interrupted him.

"Graham, you'll be sharing a room with Dodger. Room 105."

A few minutes later, Graham was sitting on a bed across from Dodger. Graham then spoke.

"So, you joined the guild?"

Dodger then laughed before responding.

"Yeah. Boomer finally convinced me to join. And now you too. You got your butt kicked out there, by the way."

"You're definitely right about that. So, how busy have you been since you joined."

"Pretty busy. We clear dungeons every few days. When we're not doing that we're doing official guild business. Lisbeth doesn't really fight, she just helps set us up with weapons from her shop and helps do some of the chores around here."

"So how's Grognak doing?"

"Pretty well. He's a lot better of a janitor then he is a thief."

Graham laughed. They spent the rest of the afternoon talking before heading out to do chores and other things.

Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Sorry for the lack of action. In the next chapter Graham goes on a hunt for the legendary sword, Double Damage. Please review! Also, I'm thinking of making a spinoff featuring Grognak titled "Grognak's Guide to Thievery" and I'd like it if anyone who would be interested in reading it would PM me telling me so. It'd be more humorous in tone and would show Grognak in various events in the main storyline stealing things.


	14. Ch14: Quest for a Legendary Sword Part 1

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 14: Quest for a Legendary Sword Part 1  
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**AN: Hey guys, I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

Graham was in Foresta, the fourth location of Ovalon, grinding monsters to level up, when he found a new area he'd never seen before. He was about to explore it when he practically tripped over a player. He looked down to see that it was a male player wearing chain mail very similar to his own. He had a spear through him and it was clear this player was dying. The player raised his arm out to Graham and spoke.

"Don't...go...you can't...you'll meet with the same fate as me..."

Graham then responded.

"What are you talking about?"

"You came here to find the legendary sword, Double Damage, did you not?"

"No. But tell me more about it. You've piqued my interest."

"That was what I said. What followed was a tale of woe and despair. There once was a player in another game similar to this...Sword Art Online...the first death game. His name was Alucard. He wielded a one of a kind sword...Double Damage...it was said to do twice the amount of damage in a single strike...but the sword enough wasn't enough for him to survive...he was killed in an ambush during a dungeon raid...rumor has it that his soul haunts the servers of this game, wanting revenge on all players of games like these. I ventured deep into this place, where it is said his soul rests with his sword. I wanted to wield its awesome power. But some stones are better left unturned. This spear...this is my punishment for being so foolish. I beg of you, turn back now, and do not even think of trying to get the sword, or you will suffer the same fate as I. Promise me! Promise me traveler!"

Graham nodded before responding.

"I promise."

The player nodded back before dying. Graham then shook his head. He shouldn't have lied to him, but he knew that pretending he was going to listen was the best thing he could do to ease his pain during death. Graham turned to the matter at hand-the sword. He didn't want to get into a dangerous situation again, but he could handle himself. However, the shadow of Leafa still loomed in his head, and he swore he heard her voice in his head, disapproving of the danger he was willing to put himself into. However, the sword would come in handy, especially since Graham would then have two one of a kind swords to duel-wield. (Unlike in SAO, in Arena Online, duel-wielding is available to all players. Don't worry. Kirito will still have an exclusive skill of his own so he can continue to be a bad-ass.)Graham then equipped Flaming Fury before heading past where the knight had died. He soon found an entrance to what looked like a dungeon of sorts, but the air surrounding it carried the feeling of unease and discomfort. Graham took a deep breath before entering the dungeon. He was immediately attacked by Walking Trees He swung his sword at one, setting it on fire, before attempting to hit the other one. It swiftly dodged before raking him with its wooden arm. Graham grabbed his side and winced in pain before thrusting his sword into the base of the Walking Tree, killing it. He quickly healed himself before heading deeper into the dungeon. He eventually ran into some stairs and he climbed down them. He stepped on a pressure plate and quickly rolled down the stairs as spears came out of the walls next to the pressure plate. Graham assumed that there must have been a trap like this near where the other player had died, and that was how he'd been impaled by a spear. Graham shrugged before opening the door at the bottom of the stairs. He ducked as arrows shot at him. Once it was clear he stood up and walked inside the small hallway the door led into before speaking.

"These traps are too easy. You hear that, Archer?! This dungeon sucks at killing people!"

Just as he said this the walls shook before slowly tightening. He then realized the walls were closing in and he quickly ran over to the end of the hallway. He dove into the door at the end before looking around, making sure he was safe now. He then heard a gust of wind in the corridor he was in. He walked toward the source of the sound, which was at the end of the corridor. The corridor cut off into a gigantic chasm of some sort. He looked down to observe it before looking to see a rock at his feet. He had a bright idea. He put his new idea into action as he kicked the rock into the chasm. He listened closely as to not miss the sound of the rock hitting the bottom, but he never heard it. He was about to turn around when he felt a cold hand grab him by the ankle. He tried to shake it off but it pulled him down on the ground before dragging him towards the chasm. The hand pulled him into a hole of some sort beneath the corridor and he looked to see his attacker, but before he could find them he felt something hit him on the head really hard. That was the last thing he remembered before blacking out.

Hey guys, sorry for the sudden cliffhanger. I decided to make it a two-part chapter towards the end, so that's why it seems so sudden. Please review and i will bring you chapter 15!


	15. Ch15: Quest For a Legendary Sword Part 2

Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 15: Quest For a Legendary Sword Part 2

AN: Hey guys, I hope you like the chapter! Please review! Constructive Criticism and just straight up praise is appreciated but flames and trolls WILL NOT be tolerated. Without further ado, let chapter 15 commence!

Graham woke up, chained to a post in the weird cave thing he'd been dragged into. He looked to the back of the cave to see a shadowy figure carrying a sword. Upon closer examination, Graham discovered that the sword was none other than Double Damage, the legendary sword he was searching for. It was called Double Damage because it did twice the damage of an average sword due to being forged with a very heavy metal. However, it was a one-handed sword, so to make it easier to hold and swing it had several small holes in it for air to travel through, thus making it feel lighter. Graham then spoke.

"So, you're the ghost, huh?"

The figure turned and cackled before speaking.

"You just don't get it, do you, Graham?"

The shadowy figure came out into the light, and Graham suddenly realized he was staring at none other than Kyousuke, leader of the Grim Reapers. Graham then spoke.

"Kyousuke? But-but you died! Gambit killed-"

"Killed me. So I've heard. I'm the leader of the Grim Reapers. Do you honestly think I actually trusted him? I went into hiding months ago. Gambit killed a double. I had an associate deliver evidence to AOLEG, and then you killed him. It was only then that I could begin my new job..."

"Job? What job?"

"It's REALLY simple Graham. Archer...he hired me...I'm an admin...I keep the players in line, and in return, he keeps me alive. All I had to do was swear my allegiance to him...in both worlds. The dungeon you are in is my secret domain. I have to protect it. If any players wander here, I am allowed to kill them."

"What about the sword?"

"The sword is a hoax. While it is a carbon copy of the original, nothing changes the fact that it is a sword made right here in Arena Online. I knew those players would come running...and they did...so I slaughtered them. This sword isn't the real deal. It isn't even a one of a kind! Within days, dozens of admins will have them, and our victims will come running!"

"Selling your soul to Archer just to keep your miserable life wasn't enough for you?! Those players...they had goals. Hopes! Dreams! you destroyed it all!"

"Yes. I did. This conversation has been great and all, but I have to get back to work. I'm afraid I have to terminate you..."

He then walked over to Graham and pulled out a knife. He stabbed him in the shoulder, causing him to wince in pain. Kyousuke laughed before pushing it further in. Graham took the chance to spit in his face. Kyousuke walked backwards and Graham kicked him back. He then summoned all his strength to break his chains. He stood up and grabbed the post, yanking it out of the ground before beating Kyousuke with it. Kyousuke kicked the post, knocking Graham back. He then got up and hit Graham before pulling out Double Damage. He then spoke.

"Enough! It's over. Your time has come, White Warrior!"

He then thrust the sword downward at Graham. Before it hit him, Graham grabbed the sword by the tip and used every last ounce of his strength to throw Kyousuke over his head. He gripped the sword tightly, holding Kyousuke over the chasm. Kyousuke then spoke.

"What are you waiting for?! Go on. Drop me. Do it. Do it. DO IT NOW!"

"No. I will not let go. I'm not like you. I don't kill people."

"Well, if you won't play along, then I'll make it really easy for you."

He then pulled out a grenade and pulled the pin before speaking.

"Drop me, or the grenade explodes and we both fall to our deaths."

"I...would rather...die...than be like you!"

Kyousuke then let go of the handle. He then fell. As he plumetted into the dark depths below, he spoke one last time.

"See you in hell, friend!"

Graham pulled the sword up and stood up. He then looked to the chasm and spoke.

"Good ridiance. You killed Masato, and now you finally have what you deserve. I pray you find more peace in death than you ever did in life. That's my revenge."

He then put away Double Damage before retrieving Flaming Fury from a chest at the end of the room. He then spoke.

"Now, how the heck am I gonna get outta here?!"

Hey guys, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Next one will be up soon. Please review.


	16. Chapter 16: The Silent Treatment

Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 16: The Silent Treatment

AN: Hey guys, I'm back with chapter 16! Please review! I'd really appreciate it.

Leafa was sitting in her room that she shared with Asuna, worried sick about Graham. It had been several hours since they had gone out grinding mobs, and Graham had gone missing. Silence filled the room, pratically choking both Leafa and Asuna alike. Leafa soon fell asleep and Asuna almost drifted off but she shot straight up when the gate to the castle creaked open. Asuna watched as Graham walked inside the courtyard. He then went inside the castle and headed for the mess hall. He went into the kitchen and got into the cabinet, looking for something to eat. He grabbed the ingredients required to make a sandwich before shutting the door to see that Asuna was standing there. He then spoke.

"Look, I can explain-"

"Don't explain it to me. Explain it to Sugu. That is, if she ever talks to you again. The whole point of you being in the guild is to avoid dangerous situations."

She then left and Graham headed to the dorms, not looking forward to the inevitable confrontation with Leafa. He soon awakened to see Dodger standing above his bed. Dodger than spoke.

"Ok, yoiu came back. It's the morning, by the way. Wanna get some breakfast?"

Graham nodded before getting up and following Dodger out of the dorms and into the mess hall. Graham got in line behind Dodger. Soon Graham was at the front of the line and he thanked Grognak as he filled his tray. He then followed Dodger out of the line and he saw Leafa walking in his direction. Graham tried to stand in her way but she gave a quick "hmmph" before sidestepping and walking past him. Graham groaned and Dodger laughed as Graham sat across from him. Graham then spoke.

"You better be laughing at how ridiculous Grognak looks in a hairnet and not me."

Dodger laughed agaiin and Graham continued.

"I cannot believe she's giving me the silent treatment!"

Dodger looked up from the book he was reading and spoke.

"I can. I think I know how she feels."

"How would you know? I thought all you knew about was reading and getting the perfect head-shot."

"Whatever. Why don't you just go apologize to her?"

"She's giving me the silent treatment, you dunce! I'd be better off apologizing to a brick wall."

They were then interrupted by Kirito.

"Having relationship issues with my sister, huh?"

Graham then responded.

"You have to be in a relationship with a person to have relationship problems with them."

Kirito then responded.

"Dont bother trying, Graham. Everyone under the sun knows you like Suguha...at least the virtual sun anyway. You should talk to her."

"The only way I'll talk to her is if you give me the Elucidator to defend myself."

"Let's make a bet. You try to beat my time on Boomer's new obstacle course. If you win, I give you the Elucidator. If I win, you have to tell Sugu how you feel about her."

Graham nodded and followed him to the course. The next thing he knew, he was hyperventilating. He then took a deep breath before walking toward Asuna. He then spoke.

"Have you seen Leafa?"

"Yeah. She's in the courtyard."

Graham took a deep breath before heading to the courtyard. Leafa was sitting on the bench. Graham then greeted her.

"Sugu, can we talk?"

Leafa closed her eyes and crossed her arms. Graham then sighed before speaking.

"Look, I know your mad at me, but I have to tell you something. I...I...I...I like you!"

Leafa opened her eyes and turned to face Graham. Graham then continued.

"Like, a lot. I have ever since we met. And I know there's no way in hell you like me back, but you could at least talk to me-"

His rant was interrupted by Leafa, who kissed him. At first Graham's eyes were wide open in shock but he soon closed his eyes and kissed her back. She wrapped her arms around him and Graham used his hands to cup her cheeks. They parted for a few seconds to breathe before diving right back in. After a few more seconds they finally parted. They both looked at eachother, their eyes sparkling. Graham then spoke.

"So, what does this mean? What now?"

Leafa then responded.

"Well, I believe we just kissed."

"I'm the sarcastic one, remember?"

Leafa giggled and they both continued to talk, both extremely happy. They had no idea what would happen next, but they knew they would always have eachother. Graham and Leafa were finally a couple, and neither could be any happier. Too bad they both had chores to do.

Hey guys, hope you enjoyed the chapter. Shoutout to Otaku of Anime for the idea of how they should get together. Please review! Chapter 17 will be up soon.


	17. Chapter 17: Another Victory

Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 17: Another Victory

AN: Hey guys, I am back with chapter 17. Please review!

It had been a few months since Graham had confessed his feelings to Leafa. Since then, they had cleared several dungeons, killed thousands of mobs, and they even managed to defeat the next few bosses. Right now they were in the dungeon where the seventh boss, Gears, resided. Graham and Leafa had arrived there first and they had harshly decided to go in before backup could arrive. Kirito and Asuna were waiting with the others outside of the arena. Soon the doors to the arena opened and Graham and Leafa walked out. Kirito and Asuna sighed in relief and watched as Leads approached the guilds who had formed a crowd of sorts. She was walking toward Kirito when she was surprised by Graham, who grabbed her from behind. Soon he was carrying her bridal-style and he walked for a few seconds before speaking.

"We did it!"

This was immediately met with cheering. Leafa then spoke.

"Can you put me down now?"

Graham then responded.

"Only if I can get a kiss."

Leafa giggled and the two briefly kissed. Kirito turned to Asuna and Asuna spoke.

"Well, those two seem awfully cheery."

Kirito then responded.

"They should be. They just defeated the second to last boss. We're almost to the end of the game. We could be going home any day now."

"I know...it's just...lok, we can't lose sight of our goal now. We have a guild to run. Kirito...these people...they trust us...they blindly follow us into battle, not expecting to come out unscathed. Hell, some of them don't even expect to make it out alive. The point is, we are their guild leaders. They look up to us. We are their sword and their shield. If we lose focus, they lose it too. We can celebrate when we wake up back on Earth."

"I understand where you're coming from. I know that being gild leader is a huge responsibility. But this victory...it's a huge boost in morale. We have to let them have this victory. They need it."

"You're right. We can worry about this later. Let's go back to base and party!"

šhe turned to leave but Kirito put his hand on her sholder and spoke.

"Slow down, party girl. You're forgetting something."

She turne to face him before speaking.

"And that is?"

"Well, you just so appen to be standing in a certain spot."

He pointed upward Asuna looked to see mistletoe-it was December, and they were everywhere in-game. Asuna giggled and Kirito kissed her. Soon they parted and they were interrupted by Graham.

"So, am I interrupting a super-romantic momnt or something? Becasue I can always give the report back at HQ..."

Asuna then responded.

"It's fine. Really. How did the battle go?"

"Pretty well. We managed to kill Gears wihout using up too much ammo. And, I reached level 60!"

They congratulated him and they went back to their base. The next day Graham was walking in the training room in the White Knights HQ when he saw Dodger. He was at a booth in the target range practicing his sniper skills on wooden targets. Graham examined him; normally Dodger was very accurate-he usually only missed two out of twenty shots and only by a couple of meters, however this time he was missing severa targets. It was obvious that Dodger had something on his mind. Graham then spoke.

"Something troubling you? You normally ace this course."

Dodger shouldered his sniper rifle and turned to Graham before spealing.

"I guess you could say that. Look, when you were majorly crushing on Suguha, did it ever keep you from focusing?"

"No. Why? Do you...have feelings...for someone?"

"Yeah."

"Who?"

"Manami."

"Oh. Wow. When did this happen?"

"A few months ago. One day I was briefly glancing at her and realized I liked her. At first it didn't make much sense. I mean, when we were in the Rangers, I always thought of her as the timid girl. And even in the real world, she was just Masato's younger sister. I don't know if he'd approve. I mean, there isn't that big of an age difference, it's just...he was always really overproctective of her. Sometimes I wish he was here so I could talk to him about it."

"I'm sorry. Dodger...it's...it's my fault he's dead. It's been weighing on my mind ever since I left the guild. I've...made so many stupid choices while I've been here...I took Masato away, and he's never coming back. Sometimes, I...I wish that he would've lived. I wish it would've been him that walked into the ambush, and that I was the one who saved him and...I wish I had died instead. My death...wouldn't have meant anything, but his death...meant everything..."

"Graham, it's not your fault! Any one of us could have walked into that ambush, but it wouldn't have mattered. No matter who it was, Masato still would have stepped in. He still would have sacrificed himself. The important thing is...you got us out. You scooped us up and carried us all out of that dungeon. And you were the only one who could have. Manami was stricken with grief, I was in shock, Boomer was being attacked, and Hiroki was to scared to move. You puled us out of the dungeon."

"It didn't matter. I still left. I thought you would blame me. I was selfish. I left. And then...Hiroki died...that was my fault too..."

"You did leave...but you were still there for us...in that momen, when Hiroki was dying, and you rsan to him, I...I saw something in his eyes...he was happy. He was scared, but he was happy. He knew you would come back, and that comforted him in his final moments. Graham, I'm not saying you didn't make mistakes. But you were there when it mattered. You've come a long way."

"You're right. I'm sorry. So, this Manami issue...how bad is it?"

"Pretty bad. I can't aim properly, I've cut my finger on my trigger about a thousand times, and can't stop seeing her face in my head."

"Ooh. That's bad. Alright, let me see what I can do."

The two began to walk outside and Commander Stone watched them from the window. He then spoke.

"They all seem so happy. Maybe I shouldn't tell them. Maybe I should just wait...but I can't. I have to tell them before it's too late."

Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry for the wait, I've been kinda busy lately. Please review and look forward to chapter 18!


	18. Chapter 18: One Last Effort

**Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 18: One Last Effort**

**AN: Hey guys, I'm back with chapter 18! I'm very sad to announce that this story will be wrapping up very shortly.(only three more chapters left after this one, and one's an epilouge.) I'd like to thank everyone who has read this story. I know it isn't groundbreaking writing by any stretch of the imagination but at least I know it's good enough for people to read it despite it's numerous flaws. I will tell you that even though this story is drawing to a close, I do have an idea for a sequel, but I may or may not write it. PM me if you think I should. The possible sequel would be called "A Tale of Two Brothers" and would focus more on Graham's younger brother Adam as he trys to grow closer to Graham after his return from Arena Online as well as manage a growing crush on Silica. I'm not gonna go into too much detail as I haven't really thought it through yet. I mean, I wanna write it, but so far I've had bad expreiance with sequels.(case in point-my first smosh game fanfic-21 reviews. The sequel-2 reviews. and its been out since August.) If you guys want to read it PM me and I will maybe start writing it but for now I'm concentrating on this. Because, reasons. Alright, let's get this chapter started!**

Commander Stone was at a crossroads. Here he was, standing in front of the White Knights HQ, abut to deliver really bad news on the same day that the guild was celebrating a huge victory. Needless to say he was not looking forward to this. But it had to be done. Besides, he was the leader of AOLEG, the police force of Arena Online. You'd think that he'd have to give bad news on an almostdaily basis. But he didn't. Usually he had thers deliver his bad news. But this was an exception. He had to be the one to tell them. He had to. He took a deep breath before walking inside the front door of the castle. He was immediatley greeted by Boomer.

"Commander Stone! Sir, what brings you here? Aren't you usually busy?"

He then responded.

"Yes. However, I needed to come here. Could you do me a favor, and gathher everyone in the courtyard? It's urgent."

"Absoloutely. Is something wrong?"

"There might be, son. There might be. Go gather everybody up and we can figure it out."

A few minutes later, in the courtyard...

Graham and the others were gathered in the courtyard. Commander Stone looked at them all before speaking.

"I wish I could tell you this at a better time. You guys just had a huge victory. You should be allowed to celebrate. But I have to tell you this. It's my duty. As the Commander of AOLEG, it is my duty and obligation to tell you that the Grim Reapers are back."

Graham then responded.

"But...how?! I brought in Atsushi. We killed Gambit. Kyousuke killed himself...I was there! How can they keep carrying on like this?!"

"That's just their nature, son. The Grim Reapers live to kill. It doesn't matter how many of their leaders we kill, they'll always find a way to come back. But that's not the point. The point is, they're back, and they're more ambitious than ever. Their new goal seems to be gaining control of Tommorow-Land, the area where Gears was located."

Klein then responded.

"Now why the hell would they wanna do that?"

"It could be for a number of reasons. The boys at HQ seem to think they want to prevent us from finding the final boss."

Kirito then spoke.

"If we can't make it to the final boss...we can't beat the game. They wanna stop us from clearing Arena Online so they can keep murdering people!"

"My thoughts exactly. Which is why I came here. Look, I know it's a bad time, but I need you to help liberate Tommorow-Land. By ANY means necessary."

Kirito then responded.

"You say that like we won't be alone. Who else is in on this?"

"It'll be a joint operation...between the White Knights of Ovalon...and the Yellow Berets."

Graham immediately groaned. The Yellow Berets were a rival guild who were dedicated to stopping threats to players, by any means necessary. While they were highly skilled, they were also incredibly rude and arrogant. Graham then spoke.

"Seriously? We have to work with THEM? I would rather take them all on by myself."

"I know you don't have a great history with them. But we don't have a choice. Besides, the decision isn't really yours to make. As leader of the guild, Kirito has the final word."

Kirito then spoke.

"We're in."

Graham immediately objected.

"But-"

"But nothing, Graham! It's my guild, and the last time I checked, you're in it."

"I didn't even wanna join!"

"Then why did you?!"

"I did it for Sugu!"

"Look, I understand that you're a loner. I was that way too once. But once I met Asuna...she changed me. You have to let Sugu change you. Graham...you've been alone for too long...you need us...you need me...I can't let you die on your own...you're my friend..."

"I...I'm sorry..."

Soon they were interrupted by Commander Stone.

"Great. Now that that's been resolved, I'll contact the Yellow Berets and inform them of the decision. I'll send Kirito a message soon. Farewell."

He then left. Soon everyone else except for Graham and Leafa were gone. Graham then spoke.

"Sugu...About our mission..."

"What about it?"

"You have to stay here."

"Wh-why?"

"Look, Sugu...this is gonna be dangerous. If anything ever happened to you...I don't know what I would do. I'd probably kill myself. Look, when I came to Japan, I was alone. No friends, a new country, and a family who couldn't notice I was growing distant. Look...Sugu...you're all I have here...I can't let you die...Not until we get back to the real world...I swear to you, no matter the cost, I'll keep you safe...until I can see your face again...I wanna see your smile...the smile I fell in love with...I have to see you again."

"Graham, I understand your concern. But I'll be fine. Besides...I have to keep you safe, too. And if I let you go off and die on your own, I'm not exactly keeping you that way. I have to keep you safe until we get back home...and I can see your real face again! I have to see the face of the person I fell in love with. Look, I know you're protective of me. And that's fine. But I'm not exactly a damsel in distress."

"Yeah, you're right. I, on the other hand, am a defenseless kitten. Luckily, I've got a Sylph warrior for a girlfriend!"

"How'd you know about my race in ALO?"

"Kirito told me."

"Brothers. They share everyone about their siblings."

"Ain't that the truth."

"You have a brother?"

"Yep. Adam. He's 14...although, we've been in here a whole year, so he's 15 now...and I'm 16...Sugu...we missed a whole year of our lives...a year we'll never get back..."

"I don't care. This year...I don't need it back. Because if we hadn't have been trapped here...we never would have confessed our feelings...this game...without Arena Online, we would have never become a couple. As long as you're by my side, in this beautiful virtual world...I don't care. In fact, I wouldn't mind missing a few more years."

Hey guys, hope you enjoyed. In the next chapter the joint operation commences and Dodger's crush on Manami continues to distract him. Please review!


	19. Announcement(Please Read)

Hey guys, I'm here with an announcement. I know I haven't updated this story in a while. I am working on a new chapter, but it's gonna be a little while. I just wanted to let you guys know that I recently posted a Toradora fanfiction called "The Tranf Student" starring Graham, the OC from this story. I'd appreciate it if you guys could read it and possibly review, you'll rely love it if ur a fan of this story.


	20. Chapter 19: Liberation

Sword Art Online: The Arena Online Incident Chapter 19: Liberation

AN: Hey guys, sorry for the wait, but I'm back. Please review!

It was early in the morning. The wind blew through the air as the sun began to make it's slow climb up into the sky. Off in the distance of Tommorow-Land, several figures could be seen. As they came closer, they became clearing. It was Graham, Leafa, Dodger, Boomer, and Manami. They reached the town and Graham spoke.

"Alright, where are the Yellow Berets? They should have been here by now."

Leafa put her hand on her boyfriend's shoulder before speaking.

"Don't worry. They'll be here."

Boomer then spoke.

"I see 'em."

He pointed to a nearby road, where several figures could be seen. They were wearing yellow camouflage outfits along with yellow berets. They stood up and their leader, a young man who appeared to be about twenty or so with black hair and red eyes walked over to Graham before speaking.

"I'm Captain Stern, leader of the Yellow Berets. Are you guys with the White Knights?"

Graham then responded.

"Yep. Talk to, captain. What are these Reapers up to?"

One of the other Yellow Berets, a boy who looked about Graham's age with brown hair and blue eyes, spoke.

"We believe they're holed up in that building."

He pointed to the clock tower and Graham spoke.

"What's your name?"

"LT. Kenji. I'm the second in command."

"Alright, how are we doing this?"

Captain Stern then spoke.

"My men and I will take the front entrance. Kenji, you're with Graham and his crew, you'll be taking the back. I'll need to borrow your guys' sniper to put him on over watch."

Dodger then spoke.

"Understood. I'll get set up in one off the adjacent buildings."

Dodger left and Graham spoke.

"Let's do this."

Graham, Leafa, Boomer, Manami, and Kenji walked up to the back door. Kenji equipped a twelve gauge shotgun before speaking.

"I like to keep this for close encounters."

Graham then spoke.

"You stole that from Aliens..."

Kenji chuckled and Boomer opened the door, brandishing his trademark grenade launcher. Graham drew Flaming Fury and Double Damage and Leafa her sword. They slowly entered the building, Boomer and Kenji covering the front, Manami covering the back with here staff. They came to a hallway and Boomer peeked around the corner before speaking.

"Graham, we've got three Reapers sitting out here."

Kenji then spoke before Graham could.

"Piece of cake. Boomer, toss a flashbang. I'll storm the hall."

Boomer nodded and equipped a flashbang. He tossed it and ducked behind the wall. Kenji leaned forward and fired his shotgun, the blasts killing the three Grim Reapers. He ducked behind the wall and reloaded, pumping his shotgun before speaking.

"Clear. Let's move."

They took the hallway and it led to a larger room, where two Reapers with machine guns were standing. Dodger used his radio to alert Graham.

"Graham, don't move, I've got these guys."

"Got it. Everybody freeze."

Two shots were fired through the window, killing the threats. They stalked into the next room and Graham turned to the window, giving Dodger a thumbs up. Boomer walked to the next dolor but he accidentally knocked over a gun rack, alerting the Grim Reapers, who all ran into the room. Leafa then spoke.

"Looks like our hosts aren't too happy to see us."

Graham then spoke.

"We are so screwed..."

Kenji drew a small dagger and threw it at a Grim Reaper, killing him. Another Reaper aimed his weapon at Kenji but he dodged. Graham ran up to the Reaper and slashed him with Flaming Fury before using the handle of Double Damage to incapacitate another Grim Reaper who rushed him. Leafa took out several of them and for once, even timid Manami held her ground. Soon the room was clear and Kenji turned back, congratulating them, when out of nowhere a gigantic broadsword impaledhim from behind. He reached out his hand to Graham before falling to his knees. He faded away and Manami gasped, clearly reliving her own brother's death in that moment. Gleams tried to shake the shock out of her, but to no avail. Graham unequipped his swords and pulled out two grenades. He urged the others to move and they did so. The muscular Grim Reaper holding the broadsword rushed towards him and he pulled the pins and planted them on him before diving back. They exploded, not doing any damage to the heavily armored foe. Graham brandished an assault rifle and rushed at him, firing wildly. The Reeaper used his broadsword to flip Graham onto the ground, causng Leafa to sceam in rage before rushing at him with her sword. She was pushed aside as well and Boomer brandished his grenade launcher, aiming at the hulking enemy before firing, killing him, finally. Graham and Leafa got up and Grahm radioed Stern.

"Stern, this is Graham. Kenji is dead. We're moving on."

Stern then responded.

"Understood. He died well. Send those bastards to hell. Stern out."

Graham signaled for the other to move up, reloading his rifle. Boomer reloaded his grenade launcher and they all moved on, including Manami, who was over her shock now. They then moved through the various floors, killing various Reapers until they met up with the others. They reached the top of the clock tower, where a locked door blocked them from the final room. They set up to breach the door. The door caved in and Stern moved in to storm the room, but he was launched back by a shot from a booby trapped shotgun. Manami ran to tend to his wounds and the others stormed the room. Soon it was clear and they exited the building, Boomer now carrying Stern over his shoulder. The other Yellow Berets right behind them. Graham radoied Dodger, who gave a thumbs up before speaking.

"Shit! They booth trapped this building! Everybody get out the way!"

The building collapsed with an explosion and the others rushed to the wreckage. Manami desperately tore through the rubble until she found Dodger, his cloak in tatters and his trademark cap missing. She picked him up and he looked at her before speaking.

"Ma-Manami I have to tell you something. I...I think I'm love with you..."

"R-Really?"

Dodger weakly nodded and she spoke.

"How long has this been going on?"

Graham then spoke.

"A few months. He's lost his edge because of you. Kinda sad actually."

Dodger then spoke.

"Look, you guys move on without me-"

"Save your strength."

"I won't need it. I'm sorry Man-"

"We're getting you out of here. Someone get me some potions."

Boomer handed her a sack of them and laid Stern on them ground. Graham sat on his knees in front of him and spoke.

"I'm sorry I couldn't save him."

"It's ok. Could've happened to anyone. Important thing is, he went down fighting."

Graham nodded before speaking.

"You gonna make it?"

This was met with a nod from Stern. Soon they left, Stern on Boomer's shoulder and thee now sleeping Dodger in Manami's arms. The next day, back at Whie Knights HQ, everything was back to normal, save for Dodger's aim, which was still as bad as before. Manami walked up to him at the training range and spoke.

"Your aim still off?"

Dodger silently nodded and Manami spoke.

"This'll help."

She kissed him, catching him off guard. He closed his eyes and melted into the kiss but after a few minutes he broke it off before speaking.

"I can't do this."

"But, you're in love with me, aren't you?"

"Yeah, but...you don't love me."

"Look, I...I'll admit, I was crushing on Graham door a while. But he has Leafa. Look, I thought about it last night, and I realized that...I've loved you this whole time. I just didn't realize it."

Dodger then spoke.

"For real?"

Manami nodded and he kissed her again. Graham watched, a smile on his face. Leafa walked up to him and elbowed him. He laughed before lightly pushing her. She began to chase him and he laughed while running away. Commander Stonser watched all of this from outside, thinking to himself. He was truly happy he'd sent them on this mission, because it brought them closer.

Another victory had been won, and Dark Spectre was next.

They WOULD beat Archer's death game.

It was only a matter of time.

Hey guys, hope you enjoyed. Please review! In the next chapter, the finally fight Dark Spectre.


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